Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
by Tassadar
Summary: Completed! 5th Year novel fic written before Rowling's 5th book. HHr join Dumbledore's newly formed Order of the Phoenix. Two New Teachers, unique plot, elemental magic, Necromancers, undead, vampires, the list goes on. Read to find out.
1. Harry's Book of Elements

Disclaimer: Spells are owned by Blizzard Entertainment and New World Inc. Levitate and Dispel magic incantations are property of J.K. Rowling  
  
A/N: This is just the Book of Elements used by HP in the story, in case you're curious as to what spells its got in it. Also, no one, except Harry knows about the elemental magic, so that's why the magic restrictions on underage wizards don't apply and his magic use isn't detected by the ministry.  
  
This story is also rated R for the excessive blood and not because it has sex and stuff in it.  
  
Spells are as follows: Level (1-7): Naturally the higher the level, the more difficult to cast the spell, and the more energy drain toll it will take on the caster; Name of the Spell; Description of what the spell does; then the words needed to cast it.  
  
Book of Elements  
  
Chapter I: School of Air Magic:  
  
[Level 1] Haste: Allows person to move faster than normal. Point wand at person (Volito)  
  
[Level 2] Dispel Magic: Undoes any spell, except for Unforgiveable Curses & forbidden magic. Hold wand in the air to cast (Finite Incantatem)  
  
[Level 2] Air Shield: Forms a bubble which blocks low level magic. Hold wand with both hands in front of you, pointed up. (Murus Caelum)  
  
[Level 2] Reflect: Reflects spells, except for unforgiveable curses and forbidden magic, back at caster. Hold wand with one hand, and create a circular motion in front of you. (Reputo Magus)  
  
[Level 3] Portal: Allows you to walk through walls/doors, solid barriers, etc. Point wand at location you want to go through. (Aperito Ostium)  
  
[Level 4] Warp: Basically the apparate spell. Think of where you want to go before and think of yourself there. Wand must be in hand, pointed at yourself.  
  
[Level 4] Invisibility: Makes person invisible w/ out use of potions or cloaks. Point wand at yourself. (Celo Visum)  
  
[Level 4] Hypnotize: Does same thing as veritaserum Point wand at eyes of person you're interrogating while saying incantation. (Aperio Confido)  
  
[Level 5] Summon Air Guardian: Easiest of the 4 guardians to control. Summons an air guardian to do your bidding. Hold wand in front of you while saying incantation. (Accersitus Caelum)  
  
[Level 5] Levitate: Self-explanatory. Swish and flick movement of wand. (Wingardium Leviosa)  
  
[Level 5] Dimension Door: Same thing as Warp, but allows you to transport yourself to different places, regardless of if there are protections which won't allow you to apparate. (Pario Foris)  
  
Chapter II: School of Earth Magic:  
  
[Level 1] Create Food: Self-explanatory. Just say Cibus followed by what you want to eat. Plate required. Point wand at plate.  
  
[Level 1] Shield: Instant shield for your defense. Wand pointed up. (Contego)  
  
[Level 1] Slow: Slows movement of opponent. Point wand at target. (Bardus)  
  
[Level 1] Stoneskin: Hardens your skin, basically you don't get hurt so easily. Point wand at yourself. (Inveteratus Tergus)  
  
[Level 2] Quicksand: Creates a pool of quicksand. Point wand at target location. (Corrumpo Terrarum)  
  
[Level 2] Force field: Creates a physical barrier. Point wand at location where you want the barrier, or hold it in front of you. (Quiesco Murus)  
  
[Level 3] Anti-Magic: Bubble that protects you from magic. Point wand at yourself. (Patrocinor Magus)  
  
[Level 4] Polymorph: Fun spell, turns opponent into sheep. Point wand at target while saying incantation (Novo Agnus)  
  
[Level 5] Summon Earth Guardian: Summons earth guardian to do your bidding. Point wand at location where you want guardian summoned while saying incantation. Dirt Required. (Orbis Terrarum)  
  
Chapter III: School of Fire Magic:  
  
[Level 1] Fireball: Ball of fire thrown at opponent. Point wand at target while saying words. (Incendia)  
  
[Level 2] Blind: self-explanatory. Point wand at target's eyes, provided they have eyes. (Caecus)  
  
[Level 2] Fire Wall: Creates wall of fire. Point wand at ground while saying incantation. A wall of fire will sprout out from the ground at that location. (Ignis Murus)  
  
[Level 3] Fire Shield: Same thing as firewall, but protects person. Hold hand or wand in front of you. Say incantation and a shield of fire will surround you. You can move around, unlike firewall. (Aduro Murus)  
  
[Level 3] Paralyze: Same thing as body-bind spell. Point wand at target. (Confuto Tractus)  
  
[Level 4] Summon Hydra: Summons fire breathing hydras. Point wand at location where you want them summoned to while saying incantation. (Advoco Curator)  
  
[Level 5] Summon Fire Guardian: Summons Fire elemental to do your bidding. Source of fire required. Point wand at fire source before saying incantation. (Accersitus Vulcanus)  
  
Chapter IV: School of Water Magic:  
  
[Level 1] Heal: Heals physical injuries of person. Hold wand over person's injuries while saying incantation. (Adaugeo Sospitas)  
  
[Level 1] Create Drink: Self-explanatory. Used in same manner as the "Create Food" spell. Goblet required. Point wand at goblet while saying incantation. (Calix _____)  
  
[Level 2] Ice Bolt: Basically same thing as fireball, just its ice shards. Point wand at target while saying incantation. (Telum Glacialis)  
  
[Level 2] Frozen Armor: Creates a shield of ice, can reflect some magic, but mostly physical attacks. Hold wand in front of you with two hands, pointed down while saying incantation. (Murus Glacialis)  
  
[Level 3] Water Walk: Hey I'm walking on water. Point wand at yourself while saying incantation before attempting to walk on water. (Gressus Aquatis)  
  
[Level 4] Clone: Creates copies of object. Point wand at target you want to copy. (Effingo _____)  
  
[Level 5] Summon Water Guardian: Same thing as fire elemental, just its water. Water needed. Point wand at source of water while saying incantation. (Accersitus Aquarius)  
  
[Level 5] Frozen Orb: Creates a stationary orb of ice that throws ice shards at opponents. Point wand in air while saying incantation. (Orbis Glacialis)  
  
Chapter V: School of Forbidden Magic:  
  
[Level 1] Bone Armor: Creates a prison for your opponent or creates a shield of bones for yourslef. No wand required for personal defense. Hold hand in front of you and it'll raise a shield of bones from the ground. For trapping another person, point wand at them while saying the incantation (Talus Murus)  
  
[Level 2] Death wave: Saps life out of several enemies, unless they're already dead. So don't use on undead. Hold wand in the air while saying incantation. (Procella Letifer)  
  
[Level 3] Animate Dead: Creates undead skeletons for you. Corpses required. Point wand at corpse and say incantation. (Neco Surrexi Surrectum)  
  
[Level 4] Inferno: Self-explanatory, Welcome to Hell, Enjoy your Stay. Hold wand in front of you, pointed at target. (Abyssus Inflammatio)  
  
[Level 5] Implosion: Makes opponent implode on himself. Very messy. Point wand at target and say incantation. (Contricio Penitus)  
  
[Level 6] Time Stop: Stops time. Hold wand in front of you, use in a circular motion, first counter-clockwise, then clockwise while saying incantation. Only you and items or people holding on to you will be able to move. (Quiesco Aetas Diutinus)  
  
[Level 7]Armageddon: End of the world spell. Use at own risk. Kills everyone, including yourself, within a certain range. No one will be left standing when you're done. Hold wand above you with both hands, pointed into the air and say incantation. (Consumo Mundus) 


	2. Chapter 1: Nightmares and A Solution

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter & the rest of the characters, not me. (Hey, I don't want to get sued)  
  
Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 1: Nightmares and A Solution  
  
It was the 8th of July and Harry Potter was back at the Dursleys' home, Number Four, Privet Drive. Sitting in on his bed at 5:30 in the morning, Harry was once again thinking of the third task at the end of the Triwizard Tournament: Cedric Diggory's lifeless body beside him when he was transported to the graveyard for his encounter with Voldemort, and Cedric's face, frozen in shock despite his painless death. Harry did not get much sleep for the past week ever since he came back from Hogwarts as the nightmares of the tournament kept haunting him.  
  
Life with the Dursleys' wasn't much better. They constantly kept him busy with chores and Harry wondered if he'd ever get the time to do his homework. However, due to his nightmares, he got little rest anyway and so, to keep his mind off Cedric's death and the nightmares, he started doing some of the homework for the start of the next term. While he was going through some of his history homework, which was boring as ever, he drifted off to sleep and once again the nightmares came back to him.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Kill the Spare," cried the cold voice of Voldemort  
  
"Avada Kedavra!"  
  
A blast of green light blazed through his mind and Cedric's body fell to the ground beside Harry. Then the scene changed to a cold tombstone and Harry was tied up so that he could hardly move. There was a cauldron simmering over a fire and Wormtail had just dropped the dust of Voldemort's father into the cauldron. The cauldron bubbled and Harry saw him go over and pick up the bundle that was the reincarnation of Voldemort himself, dropping it into the cauldron and cutting off his own hand to revive his master. Finally Wormtail came over to him with a knife and cut through his arm, drawing blood so that he could add it to the cauldron, completing the potion. Once finished, Voldemort's thin figure came rising from the cauldron, causing Harry's scar burn again to the point where it bled profusely.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
Harry immediately woke up, his hand going to his burning scar. The pain subsided eventually and once it stopped burning, he drew back his hand only to see that there was blood.  
  
*Why me? Why do I have to be the one who always survives, * thought Harry, *Why couldn't I have been the one to die instead of Cedric. Then he would be alive and Cho wouldn't be grieving over his death and she would be happy..*  
  
Cho, although Harry did have a crush on her, now that Cedric was dead, Harry could only see her as a friend. To him, it would be taking advantage of Cedric's death and he could already hear some of the nasty rumours coming from the rest of the school. The Slytherins would have the time of their lives.  
  
'Didn't Harry Potter like Cho? I think he killed Cedric so that he could have her.'  
  
'Potter must have set up the Portkey so that he could ambush Cedric and kill him'  
  
Blood started dripping onto his glasses so Harry picked up one of Dudley's oversized shirts and used it to wipe the blood off of his glasses then put the shirt to his forehead so that it would stop bleeding. He then took another look at the homework lying in front of him before going back to thinking.  
  
*Ugh, more work. If I had been more powerful or had known more spells, maybe I wouldn't have been such a failure at trying to protect those around me and Cedric wouldn't have died but maybe I can start trying to become more powerful so that I can protect those I care about. *  
  
Harry looked at his transfiguration book which was sitting over at the edge of his bed. Transfiguration was taught by Professor McGonagall, the head mistress of Gryffindor House. A strict teacher, but she was not unfair in dealing punishments to her students. The subject, ever since the beginning of summer, had grown on Harry and he started to like the idea of being able to transfigure objects into different things. Someday, he hoped to become an animagus, like his godfather, Sirius Black. Maybe he should write to him and ask him how he could become one. The thought was appealing so Harry threw the bloody shirt aside since his scar stopped bleeding, and walked over to his table near his bed where he took out a parchment and quill and started writing a letter to Sirius.  
  
Dear Sirus,  
  
I've been having nightmares of Cedric's death but don't worry about me, I'm fine. I want to become an animagus like you so that I can protect those I care about. Ron and Hermione are at the top of my list, but it is mainly so that no one else will die because of me. So I was wondering if you could teach me how to become an animagus like you and my father. Please owl me back as soon as you can with your answer.  
  
-Harry  
  
He then rolled up the parchment and took Hedwig out of her cage. He attached it to her leg and told her to deliver it to Sirius. She nipped his finger affectionately before taking off through the open window. Once she was out of sight, Harry returned to his bed and looked at the clock. It was now 7:00, another 2 minutes and he would hear his Aunt call him down to make breakfast, but until then, he just sat in his bed awaiting the call.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Sure enough, the sound of Aunt Petunia at 7:02 calling him down to make breakfast made Harry get up from bed and walk down to the kitchen where Aunt Petunia was waiting.  
  
"Prepare the breakfast quickly. Half a bagel and some low-fat cottage cheese for everyone. Don't mess up. Everything must be perfect for my Dudlykins," cried Aunt Petunia with a phoney look on her face as if she were about to burst. Dudley was still on a diet since last year, they got a letter from Smeltings that if Dudley didn't go on a diet, he wouldn't fit into his uniforms anymore, which meant he'd be expelled.  
  
"BOY! Hurry up with the breakfast, its getting late and work can't wait," yelled Uncle Vernon as he sat at the table reading the newspaper like he did every morning.  
  
"Yes Uncle Vernon," said Harry in the most neutral voice possible since any hint of emotion in his voice could be interpreted by the Dursleys as hostility. The Dursleys never cared much for Harry and they disliked him because of his "abnormality" as they called it. He wasn't able to do any magic or get any of his work done while they were around because they hated anything that wasn't considered normal.  
  
Harry brought two plates bagels and low-fat cottage cheese to the table. He put one in front of Uncle Vernon and set one down where Dudley would normally sit at. Then he quickly took his own plate and started eating as quickly as possible before Dudley got downstairs for breakfast and engaged his favourite activity: tormenting him.  
  
Unfortunately for Harry, Dudley came down the stairs, running as fast as his fat body would allow him to, and knocked Harry to the ground before sitting down at the table to eat his breakfast. Harry's plate fell to the floor and broke into several pieces and what was left of his breakfast spilled onto the floor.  
  
"BOY, PICK THAT UP AND I WANT THIS PLACE CLEANED BY THE TIME I GET BACK," yelled Uncle Vernon when he saw what happened. "AND IF YOU DON'T CLEAN IT TO THE SATISFACTION OF YOUR AUNT, I'LL SEND YOU INTO NEXT WEEK."  
  
Harry started to clean up the mess that Dudley made. He hated the Dursleys. They always made him do all the work because they were too lazy to do it themselves, except for Aunt Petunia who's personality was to make everything as spotless as possible if she wasn't looking out the windows, spying on the neighbours.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
By the time he was finished cleaning up the kitchen and finished with the rest of his chores, it was 2:00 and Harry went back upstairs to his room. He had gotten his own room because the Dursleys were afraid that people from the wizarding world were following them since they knew that Harry lived in the cupboard under the stairs, so they moved him up to Dudley's 2nd room, upstairs during the summer before his first year at Hogwarts.  
  
A tapping at the window caught his attention and when he looked at the window saw a snowy owl, which he recognised as Hedwig. He immediately opened the window and took the note that was attached to her leg. Hedwig then flew over to her cage and started drinking some water before resting, perched on top of it. Harry opened the note. It was from Sirius and Harry was surprised that he had responded so quickly. It read:  
  
Harry-  
  
Sure I'll help you in becoming an animagus, but you'll have to do it in secret because if anyone finds out, you can get into a lot of trouble. If you can, try to meet me in front of Flourish and Blotts. I'll be waiting there. You may also want to find a book called "Advanced Transfiguration, Level 7." It's the book I used when I was trying to learn how to become an animagus. Owl me with the time and day you can be there. See you there and make sure no one recognizes you. It'll be dangerous if Voldemort knew you were out in the open.  
  
-Sirius  
  
Harry got out some parchment and a quill and wrote his response to Sirus. While he was at it, he decided he should write to Ron and Hermione while he still had the chance.  
  
Dear Sirius,  
  
I'll be there tomorrow at 2:00. I'll also need to go make a withdrawal from my vault and I'll be disguised. I'll walk up to you and pet you on the head and I'll walk into an alley.  
  
-Harry  
  
~~~~~~~~  
  
Ron,  
  
How's summer? Life at the Dursleys' is as fun as its going to get. You know what I mean. I wish I could come over to see you or get out of this hellhole. I look forward to the start of the term when I can get out of this place. Don't be peeved that Hermione is visiting Krum. It's only for a week. She'll be back soon enough.  
  
-Harry  
  
~~~~~~~~  
  
Dear Hermione,  
  
How was your stay at Krum's? I think I finally decided to take your advice and start doing my homework and read the books ahead of time. I hope to see you during the summer, maybe at Ron's place or sometime before the start of term. Or maybe we can meet at Diagon Alley with Ron and we can go pick up the materials we need together. I think you'll be made a prefect this year. Well, I'll see you later.  
  
Yours truly,  
  
Harry  
  
He then rolled up all 3 parchments and attached them to Hedwig's leg before letting her out the window and started making arrangements for the next day. He packed a bag with his key and the money he needed to get to Diagon Alley. Afterwards, he quickly transfigured his clothes into something better fitting and he made sure his scar was completely covered by his hair. He then locked the door to his room before he went quietly down the stairs dressed in a white button-up shirt and a pair of khakis. He passed Dudley's room on the way where Dudley was asleep and the TV was on.  
  
*Dudley is the biggest pig I have ever seen, but his habits are likened to that of a rat. All they do is eat and sleep.* thought Harry before continuing. Aunt Petunia was in the kitchen looking out the window so he had no problem sneaking out the door. It was unlikely that the Dursleys would notice he was gone since they cared so little for him.  
  
He walked to the corner of the street and took out his wand. After making sure no one was around, he held it high over his head and said "Lumos" and the wand lit up. After a minute, nothing happened and he lowered his hand. He then remembered falling in 3rd year before the knight bus came so he tied his shoelaces together as he had often seen Neville fall over on and he took a step forward. He fell over and he heard a big BANG before the knight bus appeared.  
  
" 'ello dere. 'Choo fall over for?" sniggered Stan, the conductor of the knight bus.  
  
"Nothing happened, so I thought if I fell over, you guys would come," said Harry.  
  
"You din't 'ave to fall over for us to come, you already flagged us down when you held your wand over your 'ead. Well, get on," Stan said, still laughing at Harry's ridiculousness.  
  
"Can you take me to London?" asked Harry.  
  
"Sure, I can take you anywhere you like. For London, it'll be 11 sickles."  
  
Harry counted out 11 sickles and paid Stan before going over to the back of the bus and lying down on one of the beds as the bus sped of towards its destination. Surprisingly Stan didn't ask any questions, but Harry didn't care as long as he got to London. The fewer questions asked, the better, thought Harry and soon he drifted off to sleep.  
  
A/N: Well, that's the end of the first chapter. Like it/hate it?, just tell me. Plz R&R. If there are any misspellings, plz tell me. 


	3. Chapter 2: Meeting with Sirius

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters are property of J.K. Rowling.  
  
Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 2: Meeting with Sirius  
  
Harry was soon awoken by Stan as the Knight Bus arrived at London. It had been an entire day and it was nearly noon.  
  
" 'ey, wake up, we're 'ere," Stan said as he shook Harry awake.  
  
"Alright, I'm awake!" Harry said, a bit agitated at being awoken.  
  
"No need to get all feisty.. Say, you look familiar. 'ave I seen you before?" Stan said questioningly.  
  
"No you haven't - thank you and good bye." Harry said quickly while gathering his bags and hopping off the bus quickly before Stan could ask anymore questions.  
  
Harry then headed over to the Leaky Cauldron and went to the back, however, before he could get there, Tom the innkeeper called him.  
  
"Hey, aren't you Harry Potter?" he said.  
  
"No you're mistaken, I'm not Harry Potter," Harry said, annoyed that his disguise wasn't working too well. He forgot to change the colour of his hair and his glasses before he had left and now the other people in the inn were looking him at suspiciously. He then quickly went to the back of the inn, before anyone else started to suspect, and tapped the stones with his wand. They moved aside and opened into Diagon Alley.  
  
Harry walked into an alley first and changed the colour of his hair to brown and his glasses so they had a square shape to them instead of the round glasses he always wore. This way fewer people would question him. Then he made his way over to Gringotts and handed over his key to the goblin.  
  
"Follow me," said the goblin in a scratchy voice that sounded like he had a cold all year around. They made their way over to the carts and hopped onto one of them. The cart then sped off to his vault at a high speed. Harry recalled the first time he came here in his 1st year. Hagrid had become so sick from riding these carts that it was almost funny. Harry smiled a bit at this and soon enough, they reached his vault.  
  
The goblin then took his key and opened up the vault and stepped aside so that Harry could make his withdrawal. He took out his bag and swept about 50 galleons worth of wizard's gold into it. The mound of money left in his vault then rearranged itself into a perfect pyramid.  
  
After leaving Gringotts, Harry made his way over to Flourish and Blotts where he was supposed to meet Sirius. Checking his watch, he saw that it was about 1:00 and Sirius would meet him here at 2:00, so Harry went into the store to browse around and look for the book that Sirius asked him to buy. It took Harry about ten minutes of looking around on the shelves before he found the book. He took it down, but he noticed another book behind it. It was much older than the other books in the shop and Harry took a look at it.  
  
The Book of Elements. It sounded interesting, so Harry opened it and started reading some of contents. It turned out to be a book of spells, however, these spells weren't the same as the spells taught at Hogwarts. In fact, these looked like a book that dated back to the Dark Ages. All of a sudden, Harry wished Hermione was with him. She was like a walking library and would probably know where and when this book was from.  
  
Harry continued to look through and the spells continued to catch his interest. Warp, Fire Wall, Portal, were listed among them. He then decided he would buy this book in addition to the transfiguration book since some of the spells looked as if they could be helpful to him, but, no one must know he was learning. So he walked over to the shopkeeper and paid for the books. It cost him a good 20 galleons, though the shopkeeper looked as if he wanted to get rid of the Elements book. He put the books in his bag and exited the shop.  
  
By the time Harry exited the shop, it was already 2:00 and he noticed a big black dog sitting outside the shop. He made his way over to it and petted it on the head. The dog licked his hand happily and Harry walked into an alley with the dog following closely behind.  
  
Once they got into the alley, the dog transformed back into a large man with ruffled black hair. He looked as if he hadn't groomed in years, but then Harry remembered that Sirius was in hiding anyway so he probably didn't have time to keep himself well groomed to begin with.  
  
"Hello Harry, how are you doing? The Dursleys treating you well?" asked Sirius, looking Harry over.  
  
"Hello Sirius, you look the same as usual, and I'm doing as well as I can be staying with the Dursleys," Harry responded.  
  
"That's good. Did you get the book I asked you to?"  
  
"Yes, it's right here in my bag."  
  
Harry took out the book from his bag and handed it to Sirius, but he didn't mention the other book he bought. The fewer people that knew about the book, the better.  
  
"Alright, great, now let's get started," said Sirius, while reading the book. "First, we need to figure out what your animagus form is. To do that, you'll need to hold out your wand and say 'fateor formalis.' "  
  
"Fateor formalis," said Harry as he held his wand out in front of him. Smoke then appeared at the end of his wand and slowly formed into a bird that Harry recognized as a Phoenix.  
  
"Amazing, I have never seen anyone have that form before," said Sirius as he looked with awe at the misty figure in front of Harry.  
  
Harry then started to lower his wand, but before he could do so, another form appeared and it took the shape of a basilisk. It looked like the basilisk that Harry slew in his 2nd year, only this one had bigger fangs and a dark purple, fan-like extension that went around the neck of the basilisk.  
  
"Well, it looks like you are special indeed, no one has ever had 2 animagus forms before," Sirius remarked, once again surprised at the 2nd form that appeared in front of Harry. Harry winced at the remark since he hated being reminded about being special.  
  
"So, which do you want to learn first? The Phoenix or the basilisk?" asked Sirius.  
  
"I'll learn the phoenix form first, I loathe to be reminded of anything that slithers," Harry replied.  
  
"Alright, now here's what you do. The book says you need to focus on what your form looks like and say the words 'mutatio phoenix', since that's your form. For the basilisk, just replace phoenix with basilisk."  
  
"You'll only need to say the words for the first couple times. Once you can actually transform fully, you will only need to think of your form before you transform. Sound simple enough? Ok, let's give it a try."  
  
Harry concentrated on the form of the phoenix, just as he saw it in the mist earlier and mumbled the words. He could feel his arms transform into wings, however, that was as far as he could go. It was rather painful, but hopefully it would become painless as he got used to it.  
  
"Not bad for the first try. Now concentrate harder and think of the phoenix in your mind, as you want it to be, before saying the words," said Sirius.  
  
Once again, Harry tried to imagine the phoenix as he saw it in the mist, but he added colours to the feathers and he said the words needed for him to transform. He felt the pain again as his arms transformed into the wings, only this time his legs transformed into claws as well. This was followed by his hair changing into red feathers and a red feather appeared on his nose before the pain became unbearable.  
  
Sirius started laughing at the feather protruding from Harry's nose and once Harry transformed back into himself, he grinned widely at Sirius.  
  
"Not bad Harry, not bad. Sooner or later you'll be able to transform completely, though I think that's enough for today. You can go back to the Dursleys for now, but careful not to transform while people are watching, otherwise you could get into a lot of trouble, and the muggles may start to become suspicious. If the Dursleys give you any trouble or if you need anymore help with transforming, owl me and I'll come."  
  
Sirius then handed Harry his transfiguration book back and gave Harry a hug before changing back into the black dog and running out into the street. Harry watched him until he was out of sight and then was about to make his way back to the Leaky Cauldron before he remembered the other book he bought. He took it out and started going through it.  
  
*Maybe there's a better way of getting home instead of taking the Knight Bus and risking more questions, * he thought as he flipped through the book. It wasn't long before he found a spell that suited his need, or rather two of them. He looked at the first one and its description. It was under Chapter 1: School of Air Magic.  
  
[Level4] Warp: Basically the apparate spell. Think of where you want to go before and think of yourself there. Wand must be in hand, pointed at yourself.  
  
[Level 5] Dimension Door: Same thing as Warp, but allows you to transport yourself to different places, regardless of if there are protections which won't allow you to apparate. (pario foris)  
  
Harry then took out his wand and tried the second spell since he remembered that the Dursleys' home had protections set up by Professor Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts, which wouldn't allow him to apparate there. He closed his eyes and imagined himself in his room, and said the words "Pario Foris." A tingling sensation went through his body and when Harry opened his eyes, he found himself back in his room at the Dursleys'. Since it was already late into the evening, he was feeling a bit hungry, but couldn't go down until later, so after changing himself back to the way he was before, he went through his new Elements book, looking for more spells that he could try.  
  
It wasn't long before another spell caught his eye. This one was under Chapter 2, School of Earth Magic. It sounded rather ridiculous, but since Harry was still a bit hungry, he decided to try it anyway.  
  
[Level 1] Create Food: self-explanatory. Just say Cibus followed by what you want to eat. Plate required. Point wand at plate before saying words.  
  
Harry first made sure his door was locked before trying the spell. He decided he wanted a bit of roast chicken, so he took out his wand and looked through some of the junk in his room for something to transfigure into a plate. It was still full of some of the old toys that Dudley had broken. He found a wheel, which was on Dudley's mini-go-cart that Dudley had broken when he was two years old.  
  
*Uncle Vernon and Dudley are so beefy, it's a wonder they just doesn't fall through the floor because of their weight* thought Harry before transforming the wheel into a plate.  
  
"Cibus Roast Chicken," Harry said, pointing his wand at the plate. A sparkle emitted from the end of his wand and some roast chicken appeared on his plate. He immediately started eating it, however, it was a bit salty and he became rather thirsty, so he took out the Elements book again and looked for a create drink spell, since he figured there must be one if there is a create food spell. He found what he was looking for in the School of Water Magic section.  
  
[Level 1]Create Drink: self-explanatory. Cup or glass required. Point your wand at the cup/glass and say Calix, followed by what you want to drink.  
  
Harry rummaged through the junk pile once again and found a box, which he transfigured, into a cup. He pointed his wand at the cup and said, "Calix Pumpkin Juice." Sure enough, pumpkin juice appeared in his cup.  
  
*This is wonderful, this book is a really good investment, sooner or later, I'll be able to master the entire book. Maybe then I can protect those I care about and no one will get killed because of me* thought Harry, with thoughts of everything he could possibly do with the spells in the book.  
  
However, doing magic isn't without a price, and soon, Harry was feeling exhausted from casting all the spells he did that day, especially since the dimension door spell was a level 5, it was the most taxing on him. So he made his way over to his bed and lied down. It wasn't long before he drifted off to sleep, dreaming of all the possibilities this summer.  
  
A/N: Well, I dunno, what'd you think? R&R. 


	4. Chapter 3: Letters & the Beginning

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters are property of J.K. Rowling, not me.  
  
Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 3: Letters & the Beginning  
  
  
  
Two weeks passed before Harry received a response from Ron and Hermione. It was July 23rd, and Harry was asleep when he was woken by the sound of tapping on his window. He looked at the window, only to see 2 owls, one was a tiny owl that looked like it was on a caffeine and sugar high as it kept banging its head against the window. The other was Harry's owl, Hedwig, who was attempting to keep Pig under control and kept whacking him with her wings, but that didn't help much as he always flew into the window before being hit by her wings again. Harry quickly let them in before Pig lost anymore of his brain cells from banging it against the window for so long, what was left of his brain anyway.  
  
He took the parchments from their legs and allowed the owls to get some water for the return journey. Pig was still acting as hyper as ever and kept flying around the room, while Hedwig kept looking at him with a bit of scorn. Harry then opened the letters he received. The first one was from Ron.  
  
Harry,  
  
Nice to hear from ya. Hope the muggles aren't treating you too badly. Unfortunately, you can't come over to the burrow this year. My family is going to visit Charlie in Romania this summer and we won't be back until a week before the term starts. Maybe you can come over then, and if not, I'll meet you at the Leaky Cauldron 2 days before the term starts. We can get our materials then and I'll be sure to send you a birthday present.  
  
-Ron  
  
Once he finished reading that, he put it away and looked at the one that was attached to Hedwig. This one, from the neat and precise writing, he could tell it was from Hermione.  
  
Dear Harry,  
  
My stay in Bulgaria wasn't at all pleasant. All the talk of Quidditch, between Krum and his friends, its like I'm not even there and honestly, its starting to sound like you and Ron talking on the train already. I miss you both. I do hope the Dursleys are treating you alright, they sound horrible. I also got an owl from Dumbledore that says you can come over to my house until the start of the term and he will give us further instructions when you arrive. My parents say its ok for you to come over. Maybe I can come and get you on your birthday. Then I can give you my present in person. 3:00 on July 31st, how does that sound? I may come earlier than that. I am also glad that you are safe and are actually doing your work ahead of time for once, since the papers say that you-know-who has started killing more people and gathering more followers. Cornelius Fudge hasn't done much, he thinks that its all a hoax and he's not putting any faith in Dumbledore's abilities. How did such an idiot get put into office? I mean he used to rely on Dumbledore so often for advice on daily activities. Do owl me with your response.  
  
Love from,  
  
Hermione  
  
Harry then got out his quill and some parchment and started writing his responses, starting with Ron.  
  
Ron,  
  
I'd be glad to meet you at the Leaky Cauldron 2 days before term starts and we can get our supplies. Until then, I'll be at Hermione's house and we'll meet you there.  
  
-Harry  
  
Harry rolled up the scroll and, after spending about 5 minutes chasing him around the room, he finally caught him and attached the scroll to his leg for delivery. He then returned to the table and wrote his response to Hermione.  
  
Dear Hermione,  
  
I'd be glad to come over and sure you can come and get me on July 31st, but hopefully earlier than 2:00, I'd like to get out of here as soon as I can. I shouldn't have a problem convincing Uncle Vernon of letting me go, after all, they've been wanting to get rid of me since, well, my entire life. As for Voldemort, I think Dumbledore knows what he's doing and he'll do what he needs to do for our safety. I look forward to seeing you on the 31st.  
  
Yours truly,  
  
Harry  
  
With that, he called over Hedwig, who flew over to him and put out her leg so that he could attach the letter to it. She nipped his ear affectionately before flying out the window to deliver the message. He then went downstairs, which he hadn't done in 2 weeks since he locked himself in the room. Uncle Vernon was sitting in a chair, reading the newspaper.  
  
"Um, Uncle Vernon," said Harry timidly.  
  
"What is it boy?" said Uncle Vernon, agitated that he was disturbed while reading his morning paper.  
  
"My friend Hermione offered to let me stay at her house, so I was wondering if I could go."  
  
"I don't want any of your abnormal friends around here, coming to visit" cried Uncle Vernon, recalling the time that Ron's father had come though the fireplace and terrorized the Dursleys.  
  
"Her parents are normal mu- I mean, people, like you and Aunt Petunia," countered Harry.  
  
"Alright boy, when do you leave?"  
  
"The 31st, they'll come and pick me up."  
  
"The sooner you get out of here the better, now get out of my sight before I change my mind," Uncle Vernon said with a sneer.  
  
Harry then went back upstairs and to his room where he went over to the Book of Elements, which he put on the bed. In the 2 weeks since he had gotten the book, he had already mastered all the spells up to level 4 and was now working on the level 5 spells. He opened up to the Air Magic section and started reading.  
  
[Level 5] Summon Air Guardian: Easiest of the 4 guardians to control. Summons an air guardian to do your bidding. Hold wand in front of you while saying incantation. (Accersitus Caelum)  
  
Harry decided to try summoning an Air Guardian. At least he didn't need water or anything to create it from. He held his wand in front of him and said "Accersitus Caelum." His wand started to glow and a silver beam of light shot out of it before forming a humanoid creature that almost blended in with the wall on his room. Only a faint outline and the light blue tint of the figure was any evidence that it was there.  
  
*Your bidding, my master?* said the Guardian, which appeared to be bowing to Harry.  
  
Harry jumped back in surprise at the voice that appeared to come from his head.  
  
"You can talk to me? And please, don't call me master, my name is Harry," he said to the creation that was before him.  
  
*Master is kind, and yes, Harry, I can talk to you, but only in your thoughts, no one else can hear me. You command me, and I must follow your wishes as you are my master*  
  
"Alright, so what can you do?"  
  
*Whatever you wish, if it is within my powers, I will grant it*  
  
"Thank you, I only summoned you because I wished to know if I could actually do it."  
  
*As you wish Harry, you are a powerful one indeed, very few can summon me, even though I am the easiest to summon. I will disappear now. If you need anything, summon me again.*  
  
With that, the guardian disappeared and Harry was left in amazement at what he had just seen. He then went over to the Elemental book and looked through it again. He had another 8 days before Hermione would come and get him. Even she must not know what he was capable of since the fewer people that knew about his newfound abilities, the less likely they would become targets of Voldemort who was killing those that he considered to be a threat, and even though Harry was one of those on his target list, he couldn't bear to put his friends in danger.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Over the next 7 days, Harry continued to experiment with the Elemental spells and tried to transform into a phoenix again. He managed to summon the water guardian, which he needed a glass of water to do, however, he wasn't able to summon the Fire or Earth Guardians since he needed either a fire or some dirt to be able to summon them. As for the transfiguration, he was able to change every aspect of himself into something resembling a phoenix, but his mouth. It still looked the same as it was when he was a human and when he looked at the mirror, he looked like a phoenix with a flat face, but he was still farther along than he was when he first started with Sirius in the alley 3 weeks ago.  
  
On the 31st of July, Harry once again heard the tapping of an owl at his window. There were 2 owls, one, he knew as Pig and the other, he recognized as one of the school owls, probably Hagrid. He went over to the window and opened it. Pig flew in with a parcel attached to it and Harry made to remove it before allowing Pig to drink some water and take off through the open window. Then he went over to the other owl and did the same thing. The parcel was rather heavy and Harry assumed it was because Hagrid had sent him some rock cakes, which were only useful if you wanted to break your teeth. He opened the parcel that was attached to Pig and read the note.  
  
Harry,  
  
I wish I was coming with you to Hermione's house, I've been wanting to see her all summer, but I'm stuck in Romania now. I sent you a birthday present. Its in the parcel. Happy Birthday.  
  
-Ron  
  
Harry looked over at the package that Ron sent him and opened it. In it was a box of chocolate frogs and a bag of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans. He put it aside, saving it for later when he was hungry, maybe he'd give some to Hermione when she came to get him. Next came Hagrid's present. Harry opened the note attached and read it.  
  
Harry,  
  
Happy Birthday! You don't think I would forget your birthday now, did you? Hope the muggles are treating you right. I sent you some rock cakes and a birthday cake that I baked meself. Hope you like it.  
  
All the best,  
  
Hagrid  
  
Harry opened the package and saw some of the rock cakes.  
  
*Maybe they'll come in handy when I need to summon an Earth Guardian. They are rocks anyway* he thought as he put aside the rock cakes and opened the box with the birthday cake. It was chocolate cake with red and green frosting and it said "Happy 15th Birthday Harry" on it in blue icing. It reminded him of his 11th birthday where Hagrid made him a cake and ended up adding a nice pigtail to Dudley's backside. It was a nice cake, but he decided he should save it until he got to Hermione's house. So he took out his wand, pointed at the cake said "Murus Glacialis" and when he looked at the cake, it was surrounded by a thin sheet of ice on all sides, which would keep it preserved until he was able to eat it later.  
  
By the time Harry was done with his presents, it was 11:00 so he quickly created some food for himself and ate an early lunch. He then packed up his belongings and put Hedwig back in her cage. He then took a glass and filled it with water using the create drink spell. He then pointed his wand at it and said the words needed to summon a water elemental.  
  
"Accersitus Aquarius" and a beam of blue light shot at the glass of water. The water level in the glass then started increasing and soon enough, it was overflowing, making the carpet rather wet. After a while, the water stopped and it gathered itself up into a rather shapely woman made completely of water and looked almost as beautiful as an elf.  
  
*You summoned me master? *  
  
"Yes, and please, call me Harry as I told your brother, the guardian of the air"  
  
*As you wish Harry, now what is it that you want me to do? *  
  
"Uh, if it doesn't sound too strange for you, do you think you could give me a bath? A friend of mine is coming over in about 3 hours and I would like to make myself look at least somewhat presentable for her"  
  
*No, nothing is too strange for me. I haven't given a master a bath in several centuries, so I'll be more than happy to do so, besides, this female friend of your is special, isn't she? So you'll want to make yourself look good. *  
  
"Yes she is special, but she's not my girlfriend or anything, just my best friend."  
  
*I see, well, leave it to me and I'll have you looking great in no time. *  
  
"Thanks."  
  
After Harry undressed, feeling embarrassed at undressing while a woman was in the room, water guardian or not, he got into a tub, which he created out of the glass that was filled with water earlier and the water guardian started giving Harry his bath. Once that was done, he decided he should dress is something better than Dudley's old clothes, so he looked through some of his things and found a nice dark blue collared shirt and a pair of khaki pants. He put those on and let the water elemental look at him.  
  
*You look a lot better than before, but you would look even better if you could do something about that hair of yours, * said the water guardian looking at his hair.  
  
"It's always been like that, I can't do anything about it, even if I wanted to."  
  
*Oh, well, you look fine then. Is there anything else you need? *  
  
"No, you can go if you want. Or you can stay and talk until Hermione gets here."  
  
*So, how long have you known her? *  
  
"Since well, forever. She's a very good friend. She stayed by me last year in the Triwizard Tournament when everyone else abandoned me, even my friend Ron."  
  
*Sounds like she's very loyal and will stay by you no matter what. Say, you sure you don't have feelings for her? * said the water guardian as Harry went over to the window and looked out to see if Hermione would come earlier.  
  
"Yes, I'm sure. She's just my best friend, but I still wouldn't want anything to happen to her. Enough people have gotten hurt because of me."  
  
*Why's that? *  
  
"There's this evil wizard named Voldemort who just came back to power and he started killing people just to get to me because when I was one, he came and killed my parents and tried to kill me, but it didn't work. My mom cast some protection on me when she died, so when Voldemort tried to kill me, the killing curse backfired on me."  
  
He was now looking back at the water guardian, with a pained expression on his face caused by remembering his parents and how he wasn't able to live with them because they were killed.  
  
*I'm sorry to hear that. I shouldn't have asked, I'm sorry. *  
  
"No, its ok. Everyone's curious at one point or another, and I've gotten used to it by now. Besides, with you and the other guardians on my side, it'll be harder for Voldemort to kill anyone else."  
  
*I am glad that I can help. *  
  
Harry heard the sound of a car park on the street and doors opening. When he looked outside, he saw Hermione running up to the door and knocking.  
  
"BOY! GET DOWN HERE! YOUR FRIEND IS HERE!" yelled Uncle Vernon from downstairs.  
  
"I think you should go now, wouldn't want anyone to know you're here or that I'm talking to you," Harry said to the water guardian.  
  
*As you wish Harry. Just call me when you need me again. It was nice having someone to talk to for once. * said the guardian before disappearing back into the cup, which was once again full of water. There was a knock on the door. Harry went over and opened the door, revealing Hermione in a white blouse and a black skirt that stopped at just above her knees. She looked a lot different than the last time Harry had seen her. Her brown hair, which was normally unruly and bushy, seemed more under control and Hermione had gotten more of a figure it seems, over the summer. Harry was staring at her for a while before Hermione ran up to him and threw her arms around him, hugging him tightly.  
  
"HARRY!" she exclaimed as she hugged him. "I'm happy to see you again!"  
  
"So am I," he replied, after recovering from the shock of being hugged by Hermione.  
  
"Who were you talking to earlier?" she questioned.  
  
"No one, I was just talking to myself about what we could do when we got to your house.," replied Harry, blushing at the fact that he had been staring at Hermione earlier. Fortunately, she didn't notice, since she was still hugging him.  
  
"Hermione, could you let go of me, I'm having a hard time breathing with your arms wrapped around me," Harry managed to choke out after a while, even though he really didn't mind Hermione hugging him so much.  
  
"Sorry," she said as she let go of him and took a good look at him. Harry wasn't exactly the scrawny kid she met 4 years ago on the train as he had become a bit more athletic. Probably due to all the manual labour the Dursleys made him do she thought.  
  
"I have some candy that Ron sent. He says he misses you too and Hagrid sent me a birthday cake. We can eat that when we get to your house," Harry managed to say after a few moments of the two silently staring at each other.  
  
Hermione blushed at the mention of Ron before saying, "Great. I'll give you your birthday present when we get to my house. I think you'll like it."  
  
"Ok, let me get my things and we can go."  
  
"Let me help you with that."  
  
"Thanks."  
  
Harry and Hermione managed to lift his trunk and brought it downstairs. Uncle Vernon and Dudley were in a corner and Aunt Petunia was hiding herself behind Uncle Vernon. They were looking at Hermione's parents as if they were aliens from another planet. The Grangers, however, were muggles like the Dursleys and Hermione was the only one who had any magical powers in their family.  
  
Mr. Granger then took Harry's trunk from them, once they brought it downstairs and took it to the car while Harry and Hermione went back up to get the rest of his things. Hermione took Hedwig's cage and Harry picked up the rock cakes that Hagrid sent and put them in his pocket before picking up the cake, which was still preserved in the thin sheet of ice. Hermione apparently noticed it because she questioned him about it.  
  
"What is that?" asked Hermione.  
  
"It's the cake Hagrid sent, I preserved it like this so we could eat it later and it would still be fresh," Harry replied as they walked down the stairs.  
  
"Where did you learn to do that? How come you haven't been popped by the Ministry of Magic for violating the underage restriction?"  
  
"I found it in a book that I came across in the Hogwarts Library. I thought you'd have read it already, Hermione. You've read pretty much every book in that library," Harry said, though he too was wondering why he hadn't been owled by the Ministry for underage magic usage.  
  
Hermione hit Harry on the arm at his comment before replying, "I am not a walking library and I haven't read all the books in the library yet."  
  
Harry grinned at her. "The day you don't read a book for fun or for school is the day I date someone who doesn't go to Hogwarts."  
  
"I'll hold you to that," she replied while grinning evilly at him.  
  
When they got downstairs, Uncle Vernon and the others still hadn't moved from their place in the corner and the Grangers were looking confused as ever. They said good bye to the Dusrleys before walking to the Grangers' car. Harry and Hermione got into the back while Mr. Granger drove with Mrs. Granger sitting in the front. Once everyone was situated, they started to drive to Hermione's house.  
  
"So you're Harry Potter, I believe we've met before. Hermione tells us so much about you. It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Hermione's father, you can call me Edward and my wife's name is Helen," said Mr. Granger while they were driving.  
  
"Thank you for letting me stay at your house. Its been horrible living with the Dursleys, and I don't think I could bring myself to call you by your first names," replied Harry, surprised at how nice the Grangers were.  
  
"Oh its no problem dear, any friend of Hermione's is more than welcome to stay over. You're such a polite child. I'm surprised the Dursleys don't want you around," said Mrs. Granger, turning to face him in her seat.  
  
"They don't like me because of my abilities. They're as normal as people could get and they look upon anyone who does anything out of the ordinary or anyone that associates with people like that with disgust."  
  
"Well, you don't have to worry about that, we don't do that to people. It's rude and it shows a lack of character," said Mr. Granger.  
  
Once the conversation with the Grangers was over, Hermione turned to Harry and started conversing with him.  
  
"Harry, did you get any letters from Hogwarts yet?" she asked him.  
  
"No I didn't, you said that Dumbledore would send us letters when I got to your house."  
  
"That's right, I was just wondering if I'd be made a prefect and who the other prefect is."  
  
"I'm sure you'll be made a prefect, Hermione, you have the highest grades in our year. I'd be surprised if you weren't made Head Girl in 7th year."  
  
Hermione blushed at that comment, before returning to the conversation.  
  
"I guess we'll find out then. It shouldn't be long to get to our house. It was only a 15 minute drive to your house to begin with," she said.  
  
Harry then turned to look out the window. He had never been over to Hermione's house before and he was feeling a bit shy about staying with a girl, even if she was his best friend.  
  
"Wait until you see the house, I think you'll like it. Your room will be across from mine and it's a lot nicer than the one the Dursleys' gave you, I think," said Hermione, drawing Harry's attention back to her.  
  
"I'm pretty sure that I'll like it, since its your house. Everything you do is always perfect," Harry said in response.  
  
Hermione's cheeks turned a bit red and she smiled at him.  
  
After another minute, they arrived at her house. Mr. Granger helped Harry with his trunk while Hermione and Mrs. Granger went up to prepare Harry's room. As he stood downstairs, he was still feeling a bit uneasy, but his feelings vanished when Hermione came down and took him upstairs. He dragged the trunk with him and Hermione showed him around upstairs. First he dropped the trunk off at his room before going across the hall with Hermione so that he could see her room.  
  
She opened the door and the room was decorated in light blue wallpaper. Her bed was a twin, which was up against the wall on the north end of the room with a lamp table next to it. Hermione's favourite book, Hogwarts: A History was set on it.  
  
*Typical Hermione* thought Harry to himself as he looked around some more.  
  
There was a walk-in closet to the left and two shelves of books on the right wall, which covered the entire length of the wall that didn't have a window. Each shelf was full of books, Harry noted. In between the shelves, there was a desk right below the window and the window itself overlooked the garden. There was also another door on the north end of the wall, about three feet to the right of the foot of the bed. The frame of the door was forest green and through the windows, Harry could see it opened into a balcony.  
  
"You have a very pretty room. Let me guess, you read Hogwarts: A History, every night," said Harry.  
  
"Oh be quiet, if you read as much as I did, you wouldn't be asking me for help with your homework," Hermione retorted.  
  
"Hehe, well, I changed that one this summer, didn't I?" Harry said with a smirk.  
  
"It's about time too. Now let's show you to your room."  
  
They walked to the other side of the hall to Harry's room.  
  
"My parents' room is down at the end of the hall on the right. Here's your room," she said, as she opened the door and they walked into his room.  
  
A/N: Well, I'm technically not done, but I ended it here otherwise it'd be too long. You'll get the rest in chapter 4. R&R plz. 


	5. Chapter 4: Birthday Surprises

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling, not me.  
  
Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 4: Birthday Surprises  
  
Harry was amazed. His room appeared to be bigger than the one he had at the Dursleys' home. The walls were painted white, and his room had more windows, all of which were overlooking the street, and it came with a balcony, just like the one he saw in Hermione's room. The bed was also a twin, set about 3 feet away from the wall on the left side of the room. In between the bed and the wall was a lamp table with a lamp on it and on the other side of the bed was a sea shore blue night table. A desk made of cherry wood was on the right, with a brass floor lamp next to it in the far corner of the room. Finally, a walk-in closet was to the right of the entrance to his room.  
  
Harry drug his trunk into his room and took out his wand. He then arranged the room to his liking, while Hermione watched.  
  
"You're right, I think I like this room," Harry said to her, while levitating his books with his wand onto the desk, except for the Elements book, which he kept in his trunk, under his clothes.  
  
"I told you. So, what books have you been reading? You said you were doing your homework ahead of time. Maybe you won't fail your O.W.L.s after all"  
  
"I've been reading a book for advanced transfiguration. After last year's tournament, the thought of becoming more powerful so no one else got killed became very appealing," Harry said with a sorrowful tone as he put Hedwig's cage near the window located next to the balcony.  
  
"I don't think anyone else will get killed because of you. You're a great wizard you know," she said encouragingly, and Harry's cheeks had a red tinge added to them after her statement.  
  
Harry then went over to the door that led to the balcony and opened it. He stepped outside and motioned for Hermione to come and join him. She walked over to join him and they stood there in silence for a few moments before Harry decided to break it.  
  
"So how was your stay with Krum in Bulgaria?" he asked.  
  
"Oh it was deadly boring. All they talked about was Quidditch. It was starting to sound like you and Ron because all you talk about is Quidditch."  
  
Harry smiled at the last comment before Hermione continued.  
  
"And when his friends were over, it was even worse. It was as if I wasn't even there. They basically ignored me. Probably because I was the only girl out of the group. I think Krum just wanted me over there so he could brag to his friends that he had a girl over. I'm just glad to be back here where I can do what I want," Hermione said, annoyed that her stay in Bulgaria was nothing more than a waste of time.  
  
"You mean read books and study all day?"  
  
"I don't just read books and study all day. I have some sort of a life you know," she retorted.  
  
"Yeah, not much of one," he replied sarcastically.  
  
Hermione hit Harry on the arm. Harry smiled evilly at Hermione before grabbing her from behind and tickling her.  
  
"HARRY! STOP THAT!" she squealed in between laughs.  
  
After a while, Harry stopped and let go of her. They sat on the floor, watching each other for some hint of retaliation.  
  
"I wonder if the letters from Dumbledore will come sometime today. I'm curious as to what he's going to say," Harry said, still looking at Hermione.  
  
"I hope so. I'm just as curious as you are about what the contents of the letters are," Hermione said, before she looked at the clock and noticed it was almost time for dinner.  
  
"Let's go down since you're done arranging the room. I think my mom is making meatloaf and vegetable stew. Then I'll give you your birthday present," she said looking back at Harry.  
  
Harry then turned to Hermione and offered her his arm.  
  
"My dear Hermione, may I have the honour of escorting you down to dinner?" Harry said playfully.  
  
"Yes you may," she said as she took his arm and they walked down to dinner together.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they got down, the smell of Mrs. Granger's cooking filled Harry's nostrils. The smell was pleasant and it wasn't at all like what he had experienced at the Dursleys' since Dudley was on a diet and the Dursleys didn't really have the intelligence to make anything more complex than salad. They walked into the kitchen, still holding on to each other. If Hermione's parents noticed, they didn't say anything. Mrs. Granger just smiled at them when she saw Hermione hanging onto Harry's arm. She set 4 plates down at the table and Mr. Granger put the dishes on the table. There was a plate with 4 pieces of meatloaf on it and some steamed vegetables next to it.  
  
Harry pulled Hermione's chair out for her and allowed her to sit down before sitting down next to her. He then took the plate with the meatloaves on it and passed it to Hermione. She took one piece and put it down on her plate before passing it onto her mother who did the same thing before passing it to Mr. Granger and finally to Harry. They passed the steamed vegetables around in the same manner and once everyone got what they wanted, they started to eat.  
  
During dinner, Mr. & Mrs. Granger asked Harry about school and his life with the Dursleys, what little of a life he had with them at any rate. He answered all the questions he could, but after a while, he started getting tired. Hermione seemed to notice this, because she interrupted the conversation, asking Harry if he wanted to eat some of his cake for dessert.  
  
"Harry, did you want to eat some of your birthday cake for dessert?" she asked.  
  
"Sure Hermione let me get it."  
  
He excused himself and went upstairs to his room and came downstairs 5 minutes later with the cake, still preserved within the thin sheet of ice.  
  
"Here we go," he said as he put the cake down on the table.  
  
"Is it alright with you, Mr. & Mrs. Granger if Hermione has some cake?" Harry asked since he knew that the Grangers were dentists and didn't allow Hermione to eat anything sweet.  
  
"I guess it's alright if Hermione flosses and brushes her teeth thoroughly before she goes to bed," Mrs. Granger said a bit uncertainly.  
  
Harry then took out his wand and pointed it at the box and was about to use the "finite incantatem" spell, when Hermione quickly grabbed his hand to stop him as her parents looked at them with confused looks.  
  
"Harry, don't do this. You know you'll get into trouble if you keep using magic while you're still underage," Hermione said in her usual bossy tone when she was telling Ron or Harry not to do something.  
  
"Well, I haven't gotten into trouble yet, so I guess another spell isn't going to hurt," he said as he shook off Hermione's hand.  
  
Once again, he pointed his wand at the cake and said "finite incantatem" as Hermione looked on with disapproval. The frost shield, which Harry cast earlier to preserve the cake, disappeared without a trace. He opened the box and it revealed the cake that Hagrid had baked for Harry's birthday.  
  
Harry asked Mrs. Granger for a knife so that he could cut the cake and she got up and went to get it. In the meantime, Hermione got up, still scowling, and got 4 dessert plates from the cupboard. When Mrs. Granger came back with the knife, Harry cut the cake into 8 slices and gave a piece to everyone before taking one for himself. The rest of the cake, he put in the refrigerator for another time.  
  
While eating the cake, Hermione's mood lightened a bit and she started talking to Harry again.  
  
"This year we'll be having to take our O.W.L.s and we'll need to start spending more time in the library as soon as we get to school so that we can get as many as we can," she said with a worried look on her face.  
  
"Hermione, the O.W.L.s aren't until the end of the term, it's still a long time from now."  
  
"Well, if you don't start studying now, you and Ron will fail them. If you do, don't come to me asking for help."  
  
"Alright, I'll start studying. Let's see if it helps at all," Harry finally said so that Hermione wouldn't keep bugging him about studying for the O.W.L.s, which all of the Hogwarts students took in their 5th year. However, he regretted it afterwards.  
  
"I'm pleased that you will. Now after dinner, maybe we can go up to your room and start reading up on some of the material we're going to need to know for the O.W.L.s."  
  
At this, Mr. Granger leaned over in his chair and whispered to Harry, "Now you know what I have to put up with everyday with her mother."  
  
Harry laughed at this, however, Mrs. Granger overheard what her husband said and hit him in the back while he was still leaning over in his chair. This caused Mr. Granger to fall out of his chair and land sprawled on the dining room floor.  
  
"That'll teach you not to be making rude comments while I'm around," she said, glaring at her husband.  
  
"Maybe next time I should save the commentary for when you're not around," Mr. Granger muttered to himself, as he got up off the floor painfully.  
  
By then, Hermione finished her cake and turned to Harry, who was also finishing the last couple bites of his slice.  
  
"Harry, let's go upstairs so I can give you your birthday present," Hermione said and they both went upstairs to Harry's room.  
  
"Wait here, while I go get it from my room," Hermione said before running to her room.  
  
In the mean time, Harry stood in the middle of his room where she left him and looked around his room a bit. When his gaze fell upon the door that led to the balcony, he noticed there were 2 owls sitting outside. He opened the door to the balcony and let them in. Both owls were carrying letters bearing the Hogwarts seal. Harry took the letters from the owls and gave them a treat from Hedwig's food supply, which Hedwig wasn't at all pleased to see since she was eating at that moment. The owls then flew back out the window for the return trip to Hogwarts.  
  
There were two letters total, one was addressed to him and the other was addressed to Hermione. He opened his first one and saw that it was from Professor Dumbledore.  
  
Dear Harry,  
  
First of all, Happy Birthday from Professor McGonagall and myself. I hope your stay at Miss Granger's has been pleasant. Second, I would like to extend an invitation to you and Miss Granger to join the newly formed Order of the Phoenix, which I have created this year in light of Voldemort's return. You two are the most powerful wizards in Gryffindor house and as such, you have been chosen to represent your house in the order. You will both get further instructions from me when you arrive at the start of the term.  
  
One final note before I finish. You, no doubt, have been using magic during the summer at the Dursleys and have been wondering why you haven't been owled by the ministry for using magic in the muggle world while you're still underage. The ministry has allowed the student members of the Order of the Phoenix to use magic, even if they are underage, for their own protection in light of the increase in Death Eater activity. I believe Mr. Percy Weasley is to thank for lifting the age restriction for the members of the Phoenix Order. His influence on the Minister of Magic has increased since he was promoted as Mr. Fudge's personal assistant. Well, I believe that's all. You may show this letter to Miss Granger and I look forward to seeing you and Miss Granger at the start of the term.  
  
-Professor Dumbledore  
  
Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry  
  
Head of the Order of the Phoenix  
  
By the time Harry finished reading the letter, Hermione came back in with a package, about the size of the average paper back book, wrapped perfectly in dark blue wrapping paper.  
  
"Here's your present Harry, I hope you like it," she said, handing him his present.  
  
"Thank you, and a letter came for you while you were away," he replied, giving her the letter addressed to her.  
  
They sat down on the floor and Hermione opened the letter and read it while Harry opened his present. However, it wasn't long before Hermione squealed in delight, causing Harry to look over at her.  
  
"I've been made a prefect!" she exclaimed before she regained her composure and went over to Harry, showing him the letter. Hermione then took out the prefect's badge and gazed at it while Harry read the letter.  
  
Dear Miss Granger,  
  
I am pleased to inform you that you have been made a prefect along with Mr. Weasley. You both will receive further instruction upon your arrival at the start of term. Included is you prefect's badge that you are required to wear at all times while you are attending to your duties as prefects and at mealtimes. Please wear it when you come to the train station at the start of term.  
  
Yours sincerely,  
  
Minerva McGonagal  
  
Deputy Headmistress  
  
Harry gave the letter back to Hermione before she questioned him again.  
  
"How come you weren't made a prefect? I was almost sure that you would be," she said, yet she was happy that Ron was made a prefect. "What do your letter say?"  
  
"It's from Professor Dumbledore, saying why I wasn't owled by the ministry for using magic while I'm still an underage wizard and that we've been invited to join Dumbledore's newly formed Order of the Phoenix. It's all in the letter, you can see for yourself," Harry said, handing her the letter he got from Dumbledore.  
  
"At least you were made a member of the order. I wonder who the other members are, I hope we can learn new spells and everything," Hermione said, taking the letter and reading it.  
  
"Yeah, I guess you can't have everything," Harry said while he was still opening his present and thinking of how his newfound abilities that not even Hermione knew about, would serve him as a member of the order.  
  
"Oh, so that's why you haven't been owled by the Ministry. You should thank Percy next time we see him. At least we can use magic now and it will give us an additional month to practice our wand movements and spells for the O.W.L.s," Hermione said, thinking of all the possibilities they now had available to them.  
  
Hermione handed back the letter to Harry and then watched him as he opened up the box containing her present. His eyes widened as he saw what was in the box. He held it up in front of him and looked at it. It was an amulet containing an eye clean, emerald with a baguette cut encased in a plain, 16k gold border. The chain was made of platinum and it ended in a 14k gold clasp.  
  
"This is nice," Harry said in amazement. "Where did you buy this and how much did it cost?"  
  
"I bought it at Borgin and Burkes in Knockturn alley. I won't tell you how much it cost, but I'll tell you it cost me more than a pretty galleon," Hermione said, smiling at him.  
  
"What on earth were you doing in Knockturn alley? It's dangerous there, something could have happened to you. Last time I ended up there, I ran into Malfoy, remember? And Mr. Borgin isn't exactly the nicest shopkeeper alive," Harry said, with a worried look.  
  
"Harry, you worry too much, besides, Mr. Borgin's partner, Mr. Burkes is the one who sold these to me. He's a lot nicer than Mr. Borgin and doesn't care if I'm muggle born or not."  
  
"These? You mean there's more than one of them?" Harry said in wonderment.  
  
"Of course, I have the other one. They came as a set," Hermione said as she brought her hands around to the back of her neck and undid the clasp to her amulet. She brought it out to show Harry and it had an almost loupe clean, pear shaped, sapphire, also encased in a plain 16k gold border like Harry's. The only difference was that the chain was silver, but it also ended in a 14k gold clasp.  
  
"Do these do anything?"  
  
"Yes, they allow the wearers to talk to each other wherever they are. Mr. Burkes said there are only 4 of them in the world, but he didn't know where the other two were or if they were supposed to come in this set. I would have given one to Ron and one to Dumbledore if the other two were there, but I'm happy that I got to give you one. This way I can keep in contact with you even while you're away and I will be sure that you're safe," Hermione said, while placing her amulet on the floor and smiling at Harry.  
  
"So how do these work? Will we be the only ones able to hear each other or will others be able to hear our conversation?" Harry asked.  
  
"I wish you were the only one that would be able to hear it, but unfortunately, everyone in the room that you are in will be able to hear what the other person is saying. Let me get out of the room first, then I'll try to contact you," Hermione said and replaced her amulet around her neck and picked up her letter with the prefect's badge before walking out of his room and closing the door.  
  
Harry, still sitting on the floor, looked at his amulet and soon it began to glow and the sound of Hermione's voice filled the room.  
  
"Hi Harry, can you hear me? Just talk normally and I should be able to hear you," he heard her say. The crystal pulsed a bright emerald green light as she talked.  
  
"Yes, I can hear you. How do I activate this?" he said, feeling a bit weird for talking to an amulet.  
  
"To activate it, say 'proloquor' and then you will be able to talk to me. To stop, say 'arceo' and you won't be able to talk to me anymore," she said before his amulet stopped glowing.  
  
Hermione then came back into the room, only now she was wearing a pink nightgown. Harry thought she looked absolutely gorgeous with the way the light from the floor lamp in the corner fell on her, but he didn't bother to comment.  
  
"Well, now that you know how it works, I'm off to bed," she said. Then she went over to Harry, gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek before saying good night to him and going off to her room.  
  
"Good night Hermione," Harry said, as he watched her retreating figure, his hand absentmindedly going to his cheek where she kissed him.  
  
It was a while before Harry realized what she had done and he blushed a bright red, but it was long after Hermione had left the room.  
  
Harry placed the amulet around his neck before going over to his trunk and changing into his pajamas. He then went and laid down on his bed and made an attempt to sleep. Harry couldn't go to sleep, however, so he just laid there, thinking of different things. Strangely enough, his mind kept wandering back to Hermione in between thoughts of what to do with his Elemental abilities, his animagus training, Dumbledore's Phoenix Order, and Hermione's gift. He wondered why Hermione cared so much if he lived or died or if he was feeling happy or depressed and why she bothered to stay by him last year, while Ron and the rest of the school was so quick to turn on him last year during the Triwizard Tournament. However, he decided to set aside any feelings he had for her lest their friendship fall apart. She was his friend and he decided would support her regardless of the situation and, if necessary, he would give his life to save hers. After his self-evaluation, he finally became tired enough that he fell asleep and dreamt peacefully for the first time in a long time.  
  
A/N: Sorry that this took more than 24 hours to post, but at least you get 3 chapters at once. I hope to post at least 1 chapter/24 hour period. Anyway, there were a few changes I made in the previous chapters to maintain consistency with the Harry Potter books. Mainly the underage restriction on magic and the fact that Dudley was on a diet. R/R plz! 


	6. Chapter 5: An Unexpected Trip

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters are property of J.K. Rowling and the Wyvern Monarch belongs to the 3DO company.  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 5: An Unexpected Trip  
  
Over the course of the next few days, Hermione kept Harry busy since she made him study for his O.W.L.s, even though they weren't until the end of the term. However, Harry didn't really mind since he got to spend more time with Hermione and he was able to improve on his potion-making ability. Maybe this year Snape wouldn't be breathing down his neck and taking off points from Gryffindor because Harry didn't know how to make a certain potion perfectly or because he didn't know the answer to a question. The only drawback was that Harry had to wait until after Hermione went to bed before he could possibly practice his Elemental magic or his animagus transformation. By this time, he had mastered the Phoenix transformation, and was working on how to transform into a Basilisk King because he thought it might come in handy at some point.  
  
On the fifth day of Harry's stay, Hermione was supposed to teach Harry how to make a veneficus potion, which was a highly toxic potion often used by dark wizards, which was capable of killing even a dragon very quickly. They were downstairs in front of a cauldron, which was set on the fireplace in the living room and were about to add the final ingredient to their potion, tail of a Wyvern Monarch grounded into a fine powder, when a small, highly excitable owl came into the room and started flying around in circles.  
  
"Bloody hell, I must have left the balcony door open," Harry said as he made some attempt to catch the owl while Hermione looked on. He soon grew impatient and so he cast a slow spell on the owl and was able to catch the owl easily.  
  
"It has a letter, let's see what it says," Hermione said, taking the letter from the owl's leg while Harry was holding it with both his hands.  
  
She opened it and saw that it was from Ron. She read it out loud while Harry, still holding Pig, looked over her shoulder.  
  
Dear Hermione and Harry,  
  
My stay in Romania has become a drag. To make matters worse, Percy had decided to come along at the last minute. My parents were delighted since they rarely saw him since he was so busy with work. I don't know what he does for that lazy git who calls himself the head of the Ministry. Anyway, I won't be back for another 2 weeks and my parents said you two could come and join us in Romania for a vacation. Hermione, even you could use a vacation sometimes. There's a really cool castle nearby that I've been dying to check out, but the people around here seem to think it's cursed. These muggles, they don't know what they're talking about.  
  
Owl me with your response if you'd like to come and when. This way we can have extra rooms prepared. You can travel by portkey, Percy is the one who set it up. It's included in the letter, I think you'll like it. It should take you to where we are staying in the town of Bistritz. Be careful not to be seen by the muggles. They are very superstitious and probably will want to burn you at the stake if you appear out of nowhere. Since neither of you can apparate yet, it wouldn't be good if you two were to be tried as a warlock and witch and then executed. So be sure to arrive in the evening.  
  
Hope to see you,  
  
Ron  
  
Hermione was delighted that she could see Ron, but she decided to ask Harry first if he wanted to go to Romania for a vacation.  
  
"Harry, what do you think? Would you like to see Ron in Romania? I think it would be great. Romania has a long history. Think of all the things we could learn over there about dragons and about the country," she said excitedly.  
  
"Sure, why not, it might be fun and maybe we can see that castle that Ron was talking about," Harry said, though he was a bit nervous about taking the portkey since so many things could go wrong and the last time he took a portkey, it turned out to be one of Voldemort's traps.  
  
"I'll ask my parents if it's ok with them," Hermione said and she went off to ask her parents in the kitchen if they could go to Romania.  
  
In the meantime, Harry wrote his response to Ron.  
  
Ron,  
  
Hermione and I will be glad to come to Romania. We'll arrive 2 days from now. Then you won't be so bored over there. We can go visit that castle, but let's do it in the daytime or we'll freak out Hermione. See you in 2 days.  
  
-Harry  
  
Harry then attached the letter to Pig's leg and let him out one of the living room windows. When Hermione came back with her answer, she noticed the nervous look upon Harry's face that was still there and went to give him some comfort.  
  
"My parents say it's ok and we can go, but I know you have your reservations about taking portkeys since you had some unpleasant experiences with them. I want you to know that I'll take the portkey at the same time as you and will be with you throughout the entire trip," she said encouragingly.  
  
"Hermione, I'm glad that you care for me, but what if we happen to turn up in the middle of another death eater meeting? You'd be in danger and I don't know if I could live with myself if something happened to you."  
  
"Harry stop worrying about me. When I became your friend, I knew what I was getting myself into and I still stood by you. Call me a masochistic psycho if you want, but I did make the choice to be your friend and I will still be your friend no matter what the outcome is."  
  
Harry cheered up a bit and smiled at her, "Thanks Hermione, you mean a lot to me."  
  
She gave Harry a hug before going upstairs to prepare her things for the trip to Romania in two days. In the mean time, Harry cleaned up the potion they were working on and thought to himself.  
  
*Why did you just say 'you mean a lot to me' instead of 'it means a lot to me.' You want to mess up your friendship with Hermione? Besides, you promised yourself that you'd set aside your feelings for her and not allow them to get in the way. * he thought as he made the contents of the cauldron disappear.  
  
He then drug the cauldron back upstairs to his room and made his own preparations for the trip to Romania.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Two days later, Harry and Hermione were ready to make their trip to Romania. They were supposed to leave around 3:30 to make up for the 2 hour time difference between London and Romania. So at 3:30, they went downstairs with their trunks and said goodbye to the Grangers. They then gripped their trunks with one hand and made their way over to the portkey, which turned out to be one of Fred and George's ton-tongue toffees. Hermione looked over at Harry, who was still quite nervous about using the portkey.  
  
"Ready Harry?" she asked.  
  
"As ready as I'll ever be. Let's go. See you in Romania," he answered as he took Hermione's hand and they both grabbed the portkey.  
  
Harry felt the usual jerk behind his navel, which was accompanied with a howling wind and swirling colour.  
  
  
  
A/N: Let's see what happens next, R/R plz! 


	7. Chapter 6: Welcome to Bran Castle

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 6: Welcome to Bran Castle  
  
  
  
When the swirling colours and the howling stopped and everything came into focus, Harry and Hermione, instead of finding themselves in an inn surrounded by the Weasley horde or in a town, they found themselves in a graveyard and the sun had just set.  
  
"Uh, Hermione, I don't think we're supposed to be here," Harry said as he took out his wand.  
  
"You're right, we're not in Kansas anymore," Hermione said as she followed suit and drew her wand.  
  
"We were never in Kansas to begin with," Harry said and he lit his wand so they could get a better view of the area around them.  
  
"Really Harry, haven't you seen the Wizard of Oz?"  
  
"No I haven't. Do you think I get to watch movies or TV when I'm staying with the Dursleys?"  
  
"No I don't think so, now let's find a way to get to the town where we---," Hermione was about to say, but she never got to finish because at that point, they heard a ghoulish moan coming from behind them.  
  
They turned around and saw a bunch of corpses rising from where they lay and making their way towards them. Each of the corpses had tattered clothing hanging off of some of their limbs and their skin was rotten. It was clear that they all had been dead for some time.  
  
"Now what do we do? Do we run?" Hermione asked, looking at the zombies advancing on them.  
  
"We can't, we're surrounded. Look around you," Harry said, as he noticed that the corpses in the graveyard had all risen surrounded him and Hermione.  
  
"Well, looks like we have to fight our way out. Do you know what spells we could use?"  
  
"These corpses are rotten already, so fire spells would be the most useful," Harry said before firing a fireball at the nearest zombie.  
  
The zombie burst into flames and let out a ghostly moan before falling to the ground and turning into dust. When Hermione saw that, she immediately started firing balls of blue fire out of her wand, the same spell that she used to set Snape's cloak on fire during the Quidditch match in their first year.  
  
They continued to set zombies on fire, however, there were too many of them and since they were attacking from all directions, Harry and Hermione had to stand back-to-back as the circle of zombies closed in on them.  
  
"There are too many of them and I can't hit all of them at once. How are you holding up Hermione?" Harry asked her as he went through his mind trying to remember some of the elemental magic that he learned earlier that summer.  
  
"I'm alright for now, but they keep coming. Do something! I can't think of anything while I'm busy with these things," she replied as she fired another blue fireball at a zombie, which fell to the ground and turned to dust.  
  
Just then the spell Harry needed came to him. The firewall spell, it was a low level spell and so it wouldn't take as much energy to cast it but it would keep the number of sides the zombies could attack from down and maybe burn a few of them in the process.  
  
Harry pointed his wand at the ground in front of him and said "Ignis Murus" as he flicked his wand up.  
  
Immediately, a wall of orange flames rose from the ground in front of him and set fire to the zombies that were coming towards him. When the zombies fell and turned to dust, the remaining zombies hesitated and stood there. Harry then turned to Hermione, however, she wasn't firing fireballs anymore. Instead she was standing there with her wand at her side.  
  
"Hermione, what's wrong?" he asked with concern since they were still surrounded, even though the fire wall was still burning brightly behind him.  
  
She pointed straight ahead with her hand and when Harry looked at her face, it was contorted in horror. When Harry looked up, he saw a vampire that was dressed in brown robes that were just hanging off its body. Its skin was a deathly pale, and it had large fangs that he could see in its mouth. The eyes of the vampire and it made a movement with its hands. Hermione then started walking slowly towards it as if in a trance.  
  
"Hermione, come back here!" Harry yelled, but it didn't do any good. Hermione was under some type of hypnosis spell that the vampire must have cast on her. Oddly enough, it didn't affect Harry, though it was probably because the vampire didn't like to drink the blood of 15-year-old boys.  
  
Harry started thinking of every spell he learned during the summer, however, to make matters worse, the vampire let out an ear-splitting shriek and the zombies started moving forward again. This time, they ignored Hermione and went towards Harry instead.  
  
Harry was at his wit's end. He couldn't use the fire shield to help Hermione, because she'd get burned and Harry couldn't use the firewall because he wouldn't be able to get to her. Killing the vampire, perhaps, but what could he kill it with. She was already half-way to the vampire, so he had to act quickly.  
  
*Fire? That could work, but the zombies would just keep coming and I would die. Well, its either your life or Hermione's. You promised that you'd protect her, even at the cost of your own life. Maybe the spell the vampire used had something to do with the eyes.. BLIND! THAT'S IT! * Harry thought.  
  
Harry then put up two more fire walls on his right and left side. Now he only had to deal with the vampire and the zombies in front of him. Harry then pointed his wand at Hermione and said "Caecus" to cast the blind spell he learned from his elemental book. A flash of white light hit Hermione and she screamed. Harry then ran up to Hermione and grabbed her round the waist. He then withdrew back, but the vampire, who was now angered at having lost its prey leapt up into the air towards Harry.  
  
Harry had just pulled Hermione towards him and was holding her protectively when he noticed the vampire coming towards him. He couldn't do anything as it came since he realized he dropped his wand when he was trying to grab Hermione.  
  
*So, this is it. I get killed by a vampire and get turned into one of its slaves. Some job I did of protecting Hermione. At least she won't see what kills her. I'd hate to have such a great person as Hermione see what the vampire does to her. * Harry thought hopelessly.  
  
Harry then felt a gust of wind above him and another ear-splitting shriek. When he looked up, he noticed the vampire that was attacking him had been thrown back with a long spear made of bone impaled in his stomach. The vampire made an attempt to get up, but another spear, this time with a green glow added, came and struck the vampire in the heart. The vampire screeched again before both spears vanished and the vampire turned to dust. The remaining zombies, seeing the death of their master, withdrew into the darkness.  
  
Harry then removed the blind spell from Hermione and she opened her eyes.  
  
"Harry? What happened?" she said as her vision returned, though she was still groggy from not having been able to see anything for a while.  
  
"You were under a spell that the vampire cast on you. I blinded you so that you'd snap out of it," he replied as she looked up at him and noticed that he was holding her, but she didn't mind.  
  
Harry looked around and saw that his fire walls were still up, so he made them vanish and he noticed there that there were two people standing in front of them.  
  
One was dressed in black plate armour with a skull on each shoulder as a shoulder guard. He also was wearing arm length gauntlets with a ruby gem encrusted in each one at the wrist, knee high steel plated boots with 2 more skulls to serve as knee guards, and he carrying a kolombotavich stylet in one hand. His hair was a greyish-white and fell to his shoulders while his skin was pale, from not being exposed to the sun.  
  
The second man was slightly taller than the one wielding the dagger, but he was also dressed entirely in black, only he wore a black, medieval era, studded leather jacket and a black, floor length cape with a ruby- encrusted pentacle as a clasp. His boots were made of black leather and he was carrying a large broadsword with a dragon emblem on the hilt in a black sheath at his side. His long hair was black and was slicked back so it fell just below his shoulders. To Harry, he looked like a nobleman and the other man, despite his odd attire, must be his bodyguard.  
  
They went came over to Harry, who, still worried about being attacked, grabbed Hermione's wand since his was still laying on the ground a few feet away, and pointed it at them.  
  
"Forgive us if we frightened you," said the man in the studded leather jacket, looking at Harry, as he walked towards them. "Those zombies can be such a nuisance and that vampire is scum that deserves to be damned to eternal suffering in hell. Vampires such as him do not deserve to walk on this earth because they drink the blood of whomever they please."  
  
By then, Hermione's senses returned to her and she asked him who the man coming towards them was.  
  
"How stupid of me to forget my manners. Allow me to introduce myself, I am Count Vladimir Sepet and my friend over there," he said pointing to the man standing behind him, "is my loyal servant, Walter Laikov. You'll have to forgive his depressing attire. He is what others would call a necromancer, but don't worry, he only uses his abilities to protect me and will not harm either of you."  
  
He then squatted down beside Harry and asked him if Hermione was alright.  
  
"I'm fine, but we need to get to the town of Bistritz. We're meeting a friend there," Hermione said before Harry could respond to the question.  
  
"Ah, that is unfortunate. It is going to take at least a day to get there and it is already late. I have a castle nearby and you both are more than welcome to come and stay for the night. Walter can then take you to Bistritz in the morning," said the Count.  
  
"Thank you, your grace, we are grateful for your hospitality," Hermione said.  
  
"You're welcome, but let's not waste anymore time here. These graveyards aren't safe at night and although we defeated the ghouls, more will come later. Walter will help you with your belongings," he said as he stood up and helped Hermione to her feet.  
  
She in turn helped Harry to his feet as Walter went over to one of the graves and made a symbol in the dirt. He mumbled something and Harry and Hermione watched in horror as a skeleton rose up from the grave. Walter then went over to another grave and performed the same ritual. A second skeleton rose up from the grave and Walter commanded them to get their trunks.  
  
The skeletons went over and each one picked up a trunk and followed Walter.  
  
"I have a carriage waiting nearby, we will be able to get to my castle from there," said Vladimir, now that their attention had been shifted away from the skeletons.  
  
Harry ran over to pick up his wand before following Hermione and the Count to the carriage with Walter and his skeletons leading the way.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they got to the carriage, Harry noted that it was drawn by two black horses, unlike the horse-less carriages they had at Hogwarts. The skeletons loaded their trunks on the back of the carriage as Walter opened the door and allowed Hermione to step in first followed by Harry. The Count then stepped in and Walter closed the door behind him.  
  
The seats in the carriage were black leather and Harry could see that it was well maintained. As the carriage got to a start, Hermione, who was sitting to Harry's left, immediately started a conversation with the count.  
  
"So how is Romania? What is it like here?" she asked enthusiastically.  
  
"Well, it's a pretty country. The people are happy, as long as they're not being attacked by anyone and I like to think that the people who live on my lands are content. Occasionally, I'll have a disturbance, but it's nothing that I can't handle," replied the Count.  
  
"So how did you two arrive here and what were you doing in that graveyard so late at night? You two could have been killed and enslaved as one of the undead for eternity, even though this young man has some really powerful magic at his command," the Count said, nodding his head in the direction of Harry who turned a bit red at the last comment.  
  
"Well, you see, we were supposed to take a portkey to Bistritz, but we ended up in the graveyard instead. At least we ended up somewhere in Romania. The reason why we were there at night is because we didn't want to be noticed by the townsfolk and burned at the stake or something like that," Hermione explained.  
  
"I see, well, portkeys are very unpredictable and they don't always drop you off where you're supposed to go. You two look pretty young, where did you learn how to do magic and I don't think I caught your names earlier."  
  
"Oh, I'm Hermione Granger and this is my best friend, Harry Potter. We both learn magic at Hogwarts in England, and we know that portkeys are very unpredictable. Harry has had some rather unpleasant experience with portkeys before," she said, looking over at Harry, who was now looking uncomfortable since the Count's attention turned to him.  
  
If Harry was expecting the Count to gaze at his scar and give him the million questions routine, he would be surprised as the Count only held out his hand, which Harry took and shook it.  
  
"Mr. Potter, I have heard quite a bit about you, however, I trust that you don't wish to be reminded of that from your expression on your face, so I will leave it at that, but I do wish to thank you for your brave exploits against Lord Voldemort. Since his return, I have been very busy in eliminating his followers in my territory, such as the ghouls and the vampire you met in the graveyard. Creatures like those follow him without any question and the fewer followers he has in my lands, the safer it is for my subjects," said the Count.  
  
Harry was quite surprised that the Count said Voldemort's name without flinching since most people he met in the wizarding world flinched at the name as Hermione did when the Count mentioned it.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
They soon arrived at the Count's castle and Walter opened the door of the carriage allowing them to get out. The Count got out first, followed by Harry who then offered his hand to Hermione, which she took as she got out. The Count then led the way, with Harry and Hermione following. The two skeletons that Walter created earlier once again took their trunks and followed them as Walter stayed behind to take care of the carriage.  
  
They had to cross a long bridge before getting to the front gates, however, the Count was walking ahead with such energy that Harry and Hermione had to almost run to keep up. They finally came to a large tower, which had several small vertical windows overlooking the bridge, probably to shoot invaders that even got to the bridge. There were two large wooden doors, which looked very heavy served as the entrance to the castle, but to their surprise, the Count was able to open the large doors with ease.  
  
"Welcome to Bran Castle," he said as he stepped aside and allowed Harry and Hermione to enter. They were now in a large hall lit by large candle chandeliers, which had a large statue made of granite of a knight on a horse, pointing his sword into the air in front of him and there were two marble staircases that led to the second level, one on each side of the statue.  
  
"You two must be hungry as you probably were hoping to have supper with your friend," he said before turning to the skeletons and telling them to take their trunks to their rooms, which they obeyed immediately.  
  
"Follow me, I'll show you to the dining room. The chef can prepare whatever you wish to eat."  
  
They followed him to another door on the right and they were now in a long corridor lined with suits of armour and paintings from the Renaissance. They walked down the corridor and about halfway through, there was another pair of large doors made of wood. The Count opened the doors and they revealed a well-furnished dining room. There was a fireplace on the opposite wall and there was a painting of the Count above it. The dining table was fairly large and it could probably seat up to about 30 people, but for the occasion, the table only had 2 places set on the right end of the table.  
  
Hermione sat down on one side of the table, with her back to the fire, while Harry sat across from her. The Count sitting in between them at the end of the table in a richly decorated chair with a velvet cushion on the seat and a coat of arms on the front of it. The chairs they sat in were not as richly decorated, but they were also had a coat of arms and were still fairly comfortable. Harry looked down and saw that the dining ware was made of gold and not silver, and the plates in front of Hermione and himself were similar to the ones in Hogwarts. When Harry looked over to where the Count was sitting, he saw that he only had a goblet in front of him, made of gold and was encrusted with rubies similar to the one on his clasp.  
  
"Will you be joining us for dinner?" Harry asked the Count.  
  
"No, I ate previously, but I will join you for a drink and a chat," came the reply. "Order what you want and it will come."  
  
Harry ordered some lamb chops with gravy, while Hermione ordered a steak and some roast potatoes. A few minutes later, two short imps came with their orders on gold plated platters and placed them on the table before bowing and leaving. Two more imps who came with their drinks followed this. They poured what looked like red wine into the Count's goblet before pouring some butterbeer into theirs and left in the same manner as the first pair.  
  
They started eating while the Count talked to them about the castle and it's history. Hermione seemed very interested in the history aspect and asked the Count an overwhelming amount of questions, and Harry was surprised that the Count had the patience to answer each one. Soon they were finished with their dinner and the Count thought they should retire for the night.  
  
"One final note before you go off to your rooms, this castle has many rooms and corridors, some of which even I haven't explored yet. There are corridors and rooms filled with booby traps and creatures that haven't eaten in a while, so they wouldn't mind an early meal. Take care that you don't wander too far at night. Walter will show you to your rooms. Good Night Mr. Potter and Miss Granger," said the Count before getting up and exiting.  
  
"What do you think of the castle Hermione?" Harry asked.  
  
"It's not unpleasant but I think I'll feel safer when we get to where we're supposed to be," she said as Walter came in, still dressed in the same attire he was in earlier and motioned for them to follow.  
  
They went back to the main hall where they had entered and climbed the stairs to the right of the statue. There they went all the way down until they were right above the castle entrance. They found another wooden door, which Walter opened and revealed another long corridor. At the end of the corridor, they turned to the right and found two doors across from each other.  
  
Walter opened the door to Hermione's room and showed them in. Her room had a queen-sized bed in the middle of the left wall with a red canopy and 4 wooden support poles with dull red curtains on each pole. There was a vanity in the right corner of the room and a candle stand next to it with 3 lit candles on it. To the left of it were two glass doors that opened to a balcony and to the left of that was a dresser made of oak. On top of the dresser was a candelabra, which was also lit. Finally a large tapestry dating back to the Turkish occupation of Romania was hung on the wall to the left of the door.  
  
"This your room Miss Granger, I hope you like it and I trust your stay will be pleasant. If you need anything, please ring the bell," said Walter in a deep voice, which Hermione found a bit frightening, and pointed to a rope next to her bed. "Mr. Potter, your room is across from hers. This way please."  
  
They left Hermione and Harry was shown to his room. It was decorated in a similar manner, only his bed didn't have a canopy and there was a large mirror where Hermione's vanity would be in the other room. Where the candle stand should be, to the left of the mirror, there was a statue of a gargoyle made of obsidian holding two unlighted candles in its claws.  
  
"Your room Mr. Potter. It is among one of the best in the castle. I think you will find the mirror in your room interesting," Walter said with a smile before bowing and leaving.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Harry was pacing the room in his blue pajamas for a while, thinking of what Walter said, when he realized his amulet was glowing and a short time later, he heard Hermione's voice coming from the amulet.  
  
"Harry, I love my room. How's yours?" he heard her ask.  
  
"It's like yours only there's a large mirror where your vanity should be. It looks as if it's supposed to do something. Walter did say I would find it interesting, but I don't know what it does," he said into his amulet.  
  
"You think we should figure out what it does?"  
  
"I don't know. It may turn out to be a trap. I mean the Count and Walter have been very kind to us, but you think they could be spies for Voldemort?"  
  
"Oh Harry, I think you're just being a little ungrateful. If they wanted to turn us over to Voldemort or kill us, they would have done so already don't you think? I mean they could have left us in the graveyard with that vampire instead of saving us. Besides, when are his henchmen so nice?"  
  
"Yeah, but remember Barty Crouch? He helped me for the entire year as Mad-Eye Moody before he decided to kill me."  
  
"Well, aren't you at least a little curious as to what the mirror does?"  
  
"I guess."  
  
"That settles it then. I'm coming over there and we can take a look at it," she said and Harry's amulet stopped glowing.  
  
A few seconds later, Hermione came through his bedroom door, dressed in a pink shirt with arm length sleeves and jeans. Her wand was in her hand. They stood in front of the mirror and looked at it, but since it was too dark, Hermione decided to light the candles on the gargoyle statue.  
  
She went over to the statue, pointed her wand at the candles, said a spell and blue flames shot from her wand, lighting the candles. She then returned to looking at the mirror. Harry was busy searching the mirror's frame, looking for some type of switch or lever, while Hermione was looking at the floor near the mirror for any hidden switches. Unfortunately, neither of them noticed that the gargoyle statue was starting to move.  
  
The gargoyle statue first moved its claws holding the candles, dropping them to the floor. The candles went out when they hit the floor and Hermione was the first to notice the change in lighting.  
  
"Harry, did you leave the window open?" she said, still looking at the floor.  
  
"No, I didn't, why?" he replied as he was looking at the bottom right corner of the mirror.  
  
"How come the candles that I just lit, got blown out?" she said and looked up at the gargoyle statue to see that it was now moving and she screamed as it attacked her.  
  
Harry turned around at the sound of Hermione's scream to see Hermione on the ground and the gargoyle attacking, it's left claw coming down to strike her. Hermione threw an arm up to block it, and the gargoyle's talons cut through her sleeves and cut deeply into her skin. She yelped in pain and blood splattered on the floor as it swiped at her with the other set of claws, but she managed to back away just in time. She quickly recovered from the shock of being attacked and fired a blue fireball at it, but the gargoyle wasn't affected. Instead it just enraged it even more. Unfortunately, Harry didn't have his wand out and he quickly looked through his pajamas for it.  
  
The gargoyle continued to advance, swiping at Hermione again, this time ripping her clothes and cutting across her stomach causing more of her blood to splatter on the wall to her right. She then managed to fire a full body-bind spell at it, despite her injuries. The spell slowed the gargoyle down a bit, but it still kept coming since apparently obsidian gargoyles were resistant to magic. She then backed away again up against the wall as another claw came down and smashed the stone floor, making a huge crater in the stone tile where she was just a few seconds before. By then, Harry had found his wand and quickly pointed his wand at the gargoyle as he said the incantation for the ice bolt.  
  
Shards of ice came forth from his wand and hit the gargoyle, freezing it instantly just as it was standing on it's hind legs, preparing to strike Hermione, who was still up against the wall. The gargoyle fell over sideways to the right and smashed into a thousand pieces. Now that the threat of the gargoyle was over, Harry went over to Hermione and attended to her injuries. Hermione's shirt was now soaked with blood and it was now spreading on the floor from the cuts in her arm and across her stomach and formed a pool on the floor where she was sitting with her knees up, but still conscious.  
  
"Here, let me take a look at those injuries. Give me your arm first," Harry said, as he took Hermione's arm and moved his wand over her injuries while saying the healing spell. The wounds closed up and vanished without a trace. Harry then did the same thing with the cuts across her stomach. He could now see Hermione's skin exposed through the shredded clothing despite the blood and quickly looked away, turning red in embarrassment.  
  
"Harry, now I'm really wondering where you learn all of that magic because I don't think you learned any of it in the library since you were so busy with the Triwizard Tournament," she said, looking up at him when he finished.  
  
"Um, Hermione, I have something to tell you, but promise that you won't tell anyone," Harry said with a guilty look on his face.  
  
" (sigh) Let's hear it first, then I'll decide if I should tell anyone," she replied in an overbearing tone as she glared at him.  
  
"Well, I went to Diagon alley to talk to Sirius and I went to Flourish and Blotts. As I was looking around at the books, I found this book called the Book of Elements and I looked through it. There aren't any spells in there that are taught at Hogwarts except for a levitation spell and the finite incantatem spell. I spent all of summer learning how to do all of the spells in the book," Harry finally said.  
  
"Anything else you'd like to tell me? You don't normally go to Diagon alley, much less look at books for no reason. Why'd you go visit Sirius?" she asked, still glaring at him.  
  
"Hmm, nothing gets past you Hermione," Harry said with an innocent smile.  
  
"I've known you for four years, if you think I don't know if you're withholding information from me, you're dumber than you look. You also shouldn't have been roaming around. What if Voldemort caught you out in the open? You could have been killed," she said as she scolded Harry for his reckless behaviour.  
  
"Alright, I went there because I wanted him to teach me how to be an animagus. I went to buy the advanced transfiguration book I told you about at your house and I found the elements book behind it."  
  
"So you're an illegal animagus?"  
  
"Yeah, I have two forms, a phoenix and a basilisk king. I can transform into the phoenix, but I'm still trying to learn how to transform into the basilisk," Harry said as he looked back at Hermione, whose face expression softened as she accepted his answer.  
  
"Okay, now that you've told me everything, I've decided that I'll keep your secret unless you do something that can put you in grave danger, and if you promise to teach me how to do those spells," she said, looking Harry in the eyes as he nodded his head affirmatively.  
  
She continued to gaze into his emerald eyes for what seemed like years before Harry said something.  
  
"Hermione, are you alright? You looked lost for a moment," Harry said, confused as to why Hermione was gazing into his eyes, not that he didn't mind gazing back deeply into her brown eyes as well.  
  
"Oh sorry," she said as she broke her gaze and looked over at the shattered gargoyle statue. She noticed a dark purple amethyst gem that had a marquise cut in the remains and pointed it out to Harry.  
  
"Harry, there was a gemstone in the gargoyle. What do you suppose it's for?" she asked, pointing at the purple coloured stone in the middle of the pieces of obsidian.  
  
"I don't know. It might have something to do with the mirror," Harry suggested.  
  
Hermione went over and picked it up and they went over to the mirror. They looked around the frame of the mirror and Harry noticed a hole at the bottom of it that was the exact size of the gemstone. He pointed it out to Hermione who then put the gem in the hole. Immediately it started glowing and as they stood together in front of the large mirror, it started to distort the reflection of the room, swirling them around in a colourful rainbow before coming together again, forming an image that was very familiar to both Harry and Hermione.  
  
A/N: This is probably the longest chapter yet. There may be a few items mentioned in either this chapter or the previous chapters that you may or may not know what they are. If you don't, please tell me in your review (yes, I do read them, thank you all so much) and I'll add a glossary or something where you can look them up. Well, r/r plz!  
  
Messages to some ppl who reviewed (answering your questions):  
  
Promy- No I didn't read your fanfic, so I don't know if this has a lot in common with it or not. As for whether or not Hermione likes Ron, well you'll have to read on to find out. =)  
  
Alexandria Draco- No, I don't play Dungeons and Dragons. 


	8. Chapter 7: The Mirror of Malikith

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters are property of J.K. Rowling, not me.  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 7: The Mirror of Malikith  
  
As Harry and Hermione stood in front of the mirror, they became more horrified as the image that the mirror revealed was none other than Voldemort himself. Voldemort was standing in the middle of a circle of his Death Eaters in a dark room, his face white as death, with wide, scarlet eyes and a flat nose that was like that of a snake's. In front of him, was a kneeling person, with his head down, but they could tell who it was from the black greasy hair on his head. It was professor Snape.  
  
They continued to watch as the scene unfolded before them. Voldemort was addressing Snape and they could hear his cold voice echoing through the room.  
  
"Serverus, it's about time you showed your despicable face. I was starting to think you've left us for good," Voldemort hissed.  
  
Voldemort drew his wand and pointed it at Snape before screeching "Crucio!"  
  
Snape writhed in pain on the stone floor as the cruciatus curse hit him.  
  
As Voldemort was torturing Snape, Harry's scar started to burn and Harry staggered under the pain, his hand going to his scar. Hermione saw this and quickly moved to support him before asking him if he was alright. It was several minutes before Voldemort relented and Harry's scar stopped burning. When they looked at the mirror again, Snape was slowly getting to his knees and he remained there not daring to look up at Voldemort. It was clear that he was trembling in fear.  
  
"Forgive me master for my belated arrival, but I was collecting information for you and have come to give it to you," wheezed Snape.  
  
"Then let's hear it. It better be good or I will punish you again for your tardiness."  
  
"As you wish. It's about the boy. He's currently in Romania visiting the Weasley kid with that Granger girl. They were supposed to meet him, but my sources say that he hasn't arrived yet. It's possible that he may be dead."  
  
"I don't think so Serverus - I can feel it. It must be because I created a connection with the boy when I failed to kill him 15 years ago. I have deemed your information to be worthless, but I have pressing business, so I shall withhold your punishment for now. Continue to spy on him and return with better information next time or you will be punished severely," Voldemort continued coldly as he dismissed Snape.  
  
"Master is kind. I will return with more information that will be useful to you," Snape said as he bowed and retreated out of the room with his head down, his body still facing in Voldemort's direction.  
  
Once he left, another Death Eater entered the chamber. This one was dressed in a full black robe with the hood up. He knelt before Voldemort and Hermione noted that the Death Eater was carrying a sword since she saw a black sheath sticking out from underneath his robe.  
  
*Since when did Death Eaters carry swords? * she asked herself, but turned her attention back to the mirror as the Death Eater kissed Voldemort's robe and withdrew to what he thought was a safe distance and started speaking, all the while not daring to look up at his master.  
  
"My lord, I have come with news. My spies report that the Potter and that mudblood met with an unfortunate accident along the way to visiting the Weasleys and that Potter has gained some very powerful abilities but everything is still going as planned. Your lordship will soon have the pleasure of killing him. As for the mudblood, I'll take care of her myself," they heard the Death Eater say. Oddly, the voice sounded somewhat familiar to both Harry and Hermione, but neither could really tell due to the echoing in the room.  
  
"Excellent. Keep an eye on them and see that they aren't harmed until everything is ready. Then I will be sure to give Potter the slow death he deserves."  
  
After this, the mirror once again swirled in a rainbow of colour before forming a second image. This time Harry saw himself in Hermione's arms. They both looked several years older and Harry appeared to be dead since Hermione wept as she held him. Around them was a group of Death Eaters, all of whom were lying on the ground, dead.  
  
The scene disappeared and as the amethyst stopped glowing, the mirror returned back to normal, reflecting everything in the room as it was.  
  
They stood there in silence staring at their reflection as what they saw in the mirror sank into their minds. When Harry finally looked at Hermione, he noticed that tears were streaming down her cheek.  
  
"Hermione, what's wrong?"  
  
"What do you mean what's wrong? We just saw you-know-who and you - " she didn't finish as she flung her arms around Harry and cried.  
  
Harry held her and allowed to her cry on his chest. His pajamas were starting to become soaked from Hermione's tears but he didn't care. He knew why Hermione was crying and he found it touching that Hermione truly cared so much for him, yet he found the vision of him dying very disturbing. Did that mean that he would die when he finally faced Voldemort? Was Voldemort going to win? He didn't know the answers, but he drew himself away from his thoughts and turned his attention back to Hermione.  
  
"Hermione, you don't need to worry about me. The mirror could just be showing us what could happen. It doesn't necessarily mean that what we saw will happen," he said as he comforted her.  
  
"I - don't know. I can't really bear the thought of losing either of my best friends, you or Ron," she sobbed. "The - last - vision the mirror showed - was us and you were -. You know that you-know-who is coming after you again. I just don't want him to kill you."  
  
"I know he will come after me. It's inevitable. It looks like it's my fate to face him, and I promise you that regardless of the outcome, everyone will be safe."  
  
His last statement appeared to cheer Hermione up since she asked him if he noticed anything strange about the second death eater.  
  
"No I didn't, why?"  
  
"Because he was carrying a sword. Death Eaters don't carry swords. I saw a black sheath sticking out from under his robe when he was kneeling before you-know-who. It looked like the same sword the Count was carrying. Do you think the Count could be working for him?"  
  
"No, why would he? He did save us in the graveyard like you said and he could have turned us over to you-know-who while we were in the carriage," Harry interjected.  
  
"But, you-know-who told him to watch us, and I don't think it was any accident that the gargoyle in your room was able to come alive when you lit the candles."  
  
"Hermione, it's getting late. Stop worrying and get some sleep. We'll be able to see Ron tomorrow and everything will be alright."  
  
"Fine, but I'm sleeping in here then to make sure nothing happens. Besides, if the Count is working for you-know-who, it'll be harder to sneak up on both of us while we're asleep than if we're in different rooms," she said wiping away her tears.  
  
"Suit yourself. You can get the bed, I'll sleep sitting next to the bed," Harry said.  
  
"Why? It's a large bed and its not like I'm going to take up the whole thing and you'll catch a cold if you sleep sitting next to the bed. Just sleep on the bed."  
  
"Alright, alright," Harry said, giving in.  
  
They went over to the bed and Hermione laid down on the right side of the bed while Harry laid down on the left with his back to hers, but he couldn't sleep since he was still thinking of what he saw in the mirror.  
  
*What could Voldemort be planning? * he thought. *Who was that second death eater? The sword he was carrying sounds like the Count's. and his voice did sound familiar. I should keep my guard up and make sure nothing happens to Ron or Hermione since Voldemort is sure to be watching all of us. *  
  
Soon, Harry grew too tired to think of Voldemort's plans were and eventually he fell into a dreamless sleep.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The next day, Harry woke up to find that Hermione was already awake and fully dressed. He also noticed that Hermione's blood and the pieces of the gargoyle they fought the night before had been cleared away as he couldn't see any debris or dried blood on the floor.  
  
"Oh, Good Morning," she said cheerfully.  
  
"Morning Hermione," he replied groggily. "What time is it?"  
  
"It's about 8:00. You should get dressed. Walter will come and get us in a few minutes. Then we can go down to breakfast," she said, as she looked at him from the foot of the bed.  
  
"Uh, Hermione, could you turn around so I can change?" Harry said as he got out of bed and went over to his trunk to rummage for some clothes.  
  
She turned around and faced the wall as Harry changed into a pair of dark blue slacks and a striped shirt. When he was done changing, Hermione turned around and went to sit on the bed. Harry was about to join her when a knock at the door stopped him. He opened the door and it revealed Walter, who was still dressed in the same attire he was in the night before.  
  
"Good morning Mr. Potter - Ah, Miss Granger, you're here. I was wondering where you were when your bed was empty last night," he said. "I trust you had a pleasant sleep?"  
  
"No, we -," Harry was about to say before Hermione cut him off.  
  
"Yes, it was quite refreshing, thank you."  
  
"I'm glad to hear that. If you will please follow me, I will take you downstairs to breakfast. My attendants will get your things," he said before he snapped his fingers and a skeleton, probably one of the ones summoned from the graveyard, entered the room and picked up his trunk before exiting again.  
  
Harry and Hermione then followed Walter who led them downstairs to the dining room. This time 3 places were set on the right side of the table. They sat where they were last night while Walter sat down in the chair that the Count sat in during dinner. This time their plates were silver instead of gold and they had teacups made of china instead of goblets.  
  
"There is a note on the table that Lord Vladimir left for you before leaving last night for some business," Walter said, pointing to a note on the table.  
  
Hermione picked up the note and Harry came over to her side so that he could read over her shoulder.  
  
The note read:  
  
Dear Mr. Potter and Miss Granger,  
  
My apologies that I am unable to see you off to Bistritz this morning as I had some pressing business to attend to in another country. Walter will attend to your needs and take you to the town. I hope your stay at my castle was pleasant and that you had no trouble sleeping.  
  
You are both welcome to come visit my castle anytime since I do not get very many visitors. Good luck to you, Mr. Potter, in your excursions against Lord Voldemort. I have a feeling I will be seeing more of you in the future.  
  
Yours in Honour,  
  
Count Vladimir Sepet  
  
Harry didn't know what the Count meant when he said that he would be seeing more of him in the future, but he thought nothing of it. Hermione, on the other hand, thought it was rather suspicious that the Count was called away to another country at the same time they were leaving the castle.  
  
Hermione put the letter in her pocket as Harry returned to his seat and Walter clapped his hands twice, signaling the start of breakfast. Attendants entered the room with their breakfast and Hermione gasped as she saw that they weren't the imps from last night but skeletons carrying trays and a teapot filled with some tea. The skeletons placed their breakfast on their plates and poured their tea before retreating.  
  
Hermione started eating her breakfast as quickly as possible, though she lost most of her appetite when she saw the skeletons serving their food. The castle was starting to scare her, even though Harry, sitting across from her, didn't look frightened at all. It was a wonder that they hadn't been poisoned or killed during their stay.  
  
"Miss Granger, is something wrong?" Walter asked, noticing the uncomfortable look on her face.  
  
"Um, no, it's just that your servants startled me."  
  
"My apologies Miss Granger, but my lord's servants are with him since I am unable to do so myself. Therefore, I must create my own servants to assist me in taking care of such a large castle. I am growing old and have problems getting to places that I normally could get to if I were younger," Walter said, smiling, which surprised her.  
  
"This is very good, what is this?" Harry asked, sipping some of the tea in his cup.  
  
"Why it's your own blend of English tea straight from England. The Count is quite fond of English tea, so he has some shipped here every month," Walter stated as he ate a piece of sausage on his fork. "By the way Mr. Potter, did you find the mirror in your room interesting?"  
  
"Uh, yes, it was. What do you call it?" he asked in surprise.  
  
"It's called the mirror of Malikith. He was the first lord of this castle, as my master may have told you last night," he said, looking at Harry. "He was a powerful warlock who had many abilities, some of the more unique ones, probably had something to with the mirror he built in your room."  
  
"The mirror showed us some images after we placed a purple stone in the bottom of it. What exactly does the mirror do?"  
  
"The stone is called an amethyst, it's a stone that gave life to all of Malikith's creations. As for the mirror, it shows you what is happening at that moment in time and what will come to pass."  
  
Hermione looked like she was about to cry after hearing the last part of Walter's statement, but she held back her tears lest Walter question her again.  
  
"The mirror has never known to fail in its predictions of the future, but that can always change."  
  
They finished their breakfast shortly and Walter got up from his chair. He motioned for them to follow and they walked out of the castle where they found the carriage waiting. Their trunks were already loaded and Walter opened the door and they entered the carriage and sat down across from each other.  
  
The carriage drove off and Hermione started talking with Harry about their stay in the castle.  
  
"The stay in the castle was not as pleasant as we thought it would be. The Count is nice, but Walter is really creepy. I just hope I don't have to meet with him again," Hermione stated.  
  
"I don't think there's anything wrong with Walter. His methods may be a bit - unorthodox, but it's not like wants to kill us or anything. He did point out the mirror to me before he left last night and we wouldn't know what Voldemort was up to."  
  
"I guess, though I don't I'll ever get used to those undead attendants of his. The idea of a person who's supposed to be dead serving my food isn't very appealing to me."  
  
"Really? You didn't seem to have a problem with the Count last night."  
  
"But he's not dead. Besides, the chat we had last night was rather enjoyable. Though now we need to be careful from now on. We don't know what may come next and Walter did say that everything that we saw in the mirror could occur."  
  
"Doesn't necessarily mean it will," Harry responded.  
  
"Can you afford to take that chance?"  
  
"No. I don't suppose we can," he conceded.  
  
They continued the remainder of the trip in silence as Harry looked out the window at the scenery. It was rather peaceful. The road went through a valley with steep slopes that were covered entirely with trees and he could hear the birds chirping happily through the trees. Hermione, sitting across from him was still feeling nervous due to what Walter said earlier, but she relaxed when Harry moved over to her and put his arm around her shoulder. She leaned her head on his shoulder and soon fell asleep as Harry continued to gaze out the window at the scenery. 


	9. Chapter 8: Arrival

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters are property of J.K. Rowling.  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 8: Arrival  
  
The carriage finally arrived at the inn where the Weasleys were staying. Harry gently nudged Hermione and her eyes fluttered open.  
  
"Harry, are we finally here?" she asked.  
  
"Yes, we're here. Come, let's get our things," Harry said as the door to the carriage opened and they saw Walter unloading the trunks, putting them on the ground and entered the inn to announce their arrival to the Weasleys as Harry and Hermione stood outside, looking around.  
  
As they looked around at the town, they could see that it was fairly old and the houses were made entirely of brick and had wooden roofs. The windows on the buildings were made of glass and had wooden shutters. The dirt road leading out of the town became a cobblestone road as it went further into a town and the town didn't appear to have any electricity since the street lamps lining the roads were old-fashioned gas lamps.  
  
The townspeople were dressed in modern-day clothing despite the fact that they still used horse-drawn carts to get around the town. Although the people just passed by, Harry and Hermione were confused as to why the people were looking at them as if they had died. However, when Walter came out, the people scurried away and hid. It was clear that Walter frightened them as much as he did Hermione.  
  
"Your friends are waiting inside. I'll help you with your things," he said as he picked up one of their trunks and went back inside.  
  
Harry and Hermione picked up the other trunk and followed.  
  
When they got in, Harry noted that Walter was already bringing Hermione's to her room. They noticed saw a boy with red hair whom they recognized as Ron and Ginny, who was standing next to him, was looking at Harry, blushing the entire time. The rest of the Weasley family was also present, standing in a line in front of them.  
  
When Hermione saw them, she immediately dropped her end of the trunk and ran towards them a big hug, starting with Ron, who blushed a bright red when she did so, and moved down the line until she got to Molly Weasley.  
  
As Harry was watching Hermione hug Ron, he felt his insides leave him, but he made every attempt to keep a straight face. He wasn't about to lose his self-control and reveal all of his feeling for Hermione just because she was hugging her other best friend and the rest of his family.  
  
"Harry!" Ron exclaimed as he came up to him and greeted him.  
  
"Ron, how have you been?"  
  
"Bored stiff, but I'm doing well. How about you? How did you know we were here? How come you and Hermione didn't get here yesterday? Did something go wrong with the portkey? Who's that old guy who came in with Hermione's trunk?"  
  
"It's a long story. I'll tell you later," Harry said, still holding the trunk.  
  
"Harry," he heard Molly Weasley say. "How are you? We had been so worried when you and Hermione didn't show up yesterday. Did everything go alright?"  
  
"I'm doing fine Mrs. Weasley," he said as she came over and hugged him. "The portkey didn't work as well as we thought, but at least we ended up nearby."  
  
"Yes, those don't always work as they're supposed to. They're incredibly hard to set up and are very unpredictable," Arthur Weasley said, standing next to Percy. "Percy has been working for Mr. Fudge on ways to make them better so that they don't end up dropping people off in the wrong places, right Percy?"  
  
"Yes that's right dad," Percy said in his usual lofty tone. "Unfortunately, we haven't been making much progress but we have discovered that the portkeys have the tendency to take people where there is a powerful magical force. The longer the distance traveled, the more likely the portkey will drop you off somewhere other than your destination."  
  
Ron smirked at this. He liked the idea of Percy not being able to brag about another accomplishment.  
  
"I didn't know that. At least we ended up safe thanks to Walter," Harry said as Walter entered the room again.  
  
Walter went up to Harry and offered him his hand.  
  
"Mr. Potter, I hope to see you again. It was entertaining to see you and Miss Granger fight off those ghouls in the graveyard," he said with a smile.  
  
"Yes, I hope to see you again as well. Thank you for saving us from the vampire," Harry said, taking his hand and shaking it.  
  
"My pleasure. Dispatching beasts like it is my job and I enjoy doing it. Good bye Mr. Potter - Miss Granger," he said with a bow and left the inn.  
  
"Well, now that he's gone, how about you show Harry to his room, Ron?" Mrs. Weasley said. "Then we can all have some lunch."  
  
"Alright, Harry, come with me. You'll be sharing my room," said Ron as he grabbed the other end of Harry's trunk and they lugged it to their room.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they got to his room, they found it was pretty small. There were two single sized beds and a wooden lamp table in between them. There were two windows on the right, but the only light in the room for nighttime, would come from the oil lamp on the table.  
  
They placed his trunk in front of the bed on the right and walked out of the room towards the foyer where everyone else was waiting. Then the entire group walked outside with Arthur and Molly Weasley leading the way to the restaurant.  
  
During the entire time, Ron was telling Harry and Hermione about his stay, how Charlie was doing with the dragons and they asked him how Nobert was doing. Nobert was the Norwegian Ridgeback that Hagrid won from a stranger in a pub, who turned out to be Professor Quirrell in disguise, during their first year at Hogwarts. Ron said that Nobert was doing well and they were going to see Charlie again tomorrow.  
  
The walk took all of 5 minutes, and the restaurant turned out to be a small tavern that served food from different regions of Romania.  
  
Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat at their own table while the others sat at a long table, which they had reserved ahead of time. They were given menus and the waiter took their orders. Harry and Ron both ordered the Sauerkraut with beef while Hermione settled for stuffed pike.  
  
During lunch, Ron asked Harry and Hermione what happened the day before. Ron was a good listener as they told him about how they ended up in the graveyard and how they got attacked by the zombies and the vampire before Walter and the Count came and saved them. Ron was amazed that they managed to hold off for so long without help. Then they told him about their stay in the castle (at which Ron exclaimed, "bloody brilliant!"), the gargoyle attack, and the mirror. Oddly, neither of them mentioned Harry's new abilities nor the fact that they had been sleeping in the same room at night.  
  
"So what happened to the Count? He just left you guys in the castle with Walter?" said Ron after they were finished. "Walter's really creepy."  
  
"Yes he is. His skeletons frightened me at least three times during our stay," said Hermione matter-of-factly.  
  
"I don't think so. He smiles too much for a person who's supposed to be a master of the dark arts," countered Harry.  
  
"Really Harry, I'm horrified at your taste in company. It's not becoming of you," said Hermione with a revolting look on her face.  
  
"Sorry," he said as he grinning at her.  
  
They finished lunch and went back to the inn. Harry, Ron, and Hermione played several games of exploding snap in their room, after Hermione cast a silencing charm around it so that no one would hear the cards explode.  
  
During a game, Ron asked them if they could go back to the castle again before they left. Harry didn't mind, but Hermione glared at him, causing him to withdraw his suggestion. Hermione soon grew tired and went to her room to take a nap while Harry and Ron played a game of wizard's chess.  
  
"Hey Harry," Ron said while thinking of a move to make.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Do you think I have a chance?"  
  
"Of course you do, I haven't won a game against you in years, why would I start now?" he answered, confused as to why Ron was asking such a question.  
  
"I meant with Hermione."  
  
"Oh," said Harry while trying not to show his disappointment at Ron's statement. "I guess you do if you would stop getting her peeved at you. Why do you ask?"  
  
"Because I've had a crush on her since last year. I couldn't stand the fact that she was going out with Krum. I mean do you think she likes me?"  
  
"Ron, you're just being jealous. If you had acted sooner, maybe Hermione would have gone with you rather than with Krum," Harry pointed out, though he too wished that he had asked her out himself. Now that Ron told him he wanted her, he couldn't bring himself to interfere with Ron's wishes. He mentally kicked himself for being such a gentleman, but this was his best friend and so he would allow him to pursue her, unless Hermione decided that she didn't want Ron.  
  
*As if Hermione's ever going to want me. * he thought to himself, but in the process, he made a bad move and Ron checkmated him.  
  
"Well Harry? What do you think I should do about Hermione?" Ron asked, while cleaning up the pieces before sitting down on his bed.  
  
Harry was still sitting on the floor trying to remain calm, but after Ron's last question, he lost it a bit.  
  
"Ron, if you really want to see if you can date Hermione, then just ask her. Whether she accepts or not that's up to her," he said, very agitated that Ron was being such a prat.  
  
Harry then got up and left the room to go chat with Fred and George outside while Ron just sat on his bed in silence with a stunned look on his face.  
  
A/N: YES! 2 chapters in less than 24 hours! Well, what'd you think? Sorry if these chapters seem a bit boring, but more action will come soon.  
  
Messages to people who reviewed:  
  
Wink at J00: Don't worry, I'll let Hermione become an animagus, dunno about the fox though.  
  
Promy: Sorry about the confusion.  
  
Angelis: Thank you for your kind reviews. 


	10. Chapter 9: Norbert

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters are property of J.K. Rowling  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 9: Norbert  
  
The next day, Harry and Hermione went to visit Charlie with the Weasleys as planned. As soon as Harry and Ron got up, they packed their brooms in some blankets so that the muggles wouldn't suspect anything, and went out to the foyer where they saw everyone already waiting.  
  
"It's about time you two showed up," Hermione said. "We almost left you behind."  
  
"I wish I was left behind, then I could go see the castle," Ron muttered a bit too loudly.  
  
"Ron! You promised you wouldn't go there," Hermione said crossly.  
  
"I didn't say anything," he said, with a guilty look.  
  
"Really now, it's written all over your face," she said as Harry stepped in between them.  
  
"Common, both of you. Let's go before we leave you two behind," he said looking at both of them.  
  
"Yes, you're right Harry, I wouldn't want to get left behind, unlike someone here," Hermione said, glaring at Ron.  
  
"Well, I wouldn't want to get stuck with you either," Ron retorted, glaring back at her.  
  
"Hey you 3, get moving, we have a long drive ahead of us," they heard Arthur Weasley say from the entrance to the street.  
  
They immediately stopped their bickering and went outside.  
  
When they got outside, they saw two horse-driven carts waiting. Percy was driving the first one, with Molly Weasley sitting next to him while Ginny, Fred and George were sitting in the back. Harry, Ron, and Hermione would be going with Arthur in the second cart.  
  
Once everyone was situated, they started off in the same direction of the castle that Harry and Hermione had spent the night in two days ago.  
  
"Why are we going in the direction of the castle Mr. Weasley?" Harry asked.  
  
"Oh, the dragon roosts are on a mountain on the other side of the castle. This is the only road leading there," Arthur explained. "The Count who owns the castle is a member of the International Ministry of Magic. He's there to prevent the muggles from finding the dragon roosts and seeing the dragons. We would have a problem if they did because they'll probably get scared and everyone would think they'd gone mad or we'd have another dragon hunting period."  
  
"Too bad we can't go see the castle," Ron said with a disappointed look on his face.  
  
"Don't start that again," said Hermione, agitated.  
  
"Well, I don't mind going near it, as long as we don't get attacked and get to the dragon roosts in one piece," Harry finally said, sensing another argument coming between his two friends.  
  
"Ron, why don't we play a card game or something to pass the time," Harry suggested quickly to change the subject.  
  
"What did you have in mind? Exploding snap?" he asked.  
  
"How about something quieter. I don't want to scare away the wildlife," he replied.  
  
"Why so caring about the wildlife all of a sudden?" Ron said, confused.  
  
"Ron, obviously you haven't come to appreciate the beauty of nature," Hermione defended.  
  
"Hey, at least I don't have my nose buried in books all day, so I have the time to appreciate nature," Ron said cuttingly.  
  
" (sigh) Here we go again..," Harry said, giving up.  
  
"What do you mean Harry?" Ron said, overhearing Harry's comment.  
  
"Nothing," he replied with an innocent smile. "Just go to sleep or something Ron, I'll wake you up when we get there."  
  
"Fine, have fun nature gazing you two," Ron said before he lay down and stared at the sky.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
It was late into the evening by the time they reached the dragon roosts and they could see some of the dragons' fires from a distance. The dragon roosts happened to be high up on a mountain located near the castle.  
  
Charlie greeted them enthusiastically when they arrived and showed Harry and Hermione around while Ron sat in the cart looking rather bored. The tour took all of an hour and when they were done with that, Harry and Ron decided to go flying around on their brooms. Hermione stayed on the ground with Ginny, who didn't have a broom to fly around on, and they both watched the boys as they flew around trying to race each other from one side of the mountain to the other. Harry won naturally since his firebolt was faster and could outmaneuver Ron's Cleansweep 10 that Fred and George had bought for him with their money.  
  
After about two hours of flying, Charlie finally took Harry, Ron, and Hermione to see Norbert, the Norwegian Ridgeback. He led them to a cave where Norbert was staying. The cave tunnels were fairly dark even though there were lit torches lining the walls at intervals, however, the chamber that Norbert was in was brightly lit.  
  
They stood in at the entrance to the chamber and they could see that Norbert had grown since the last time they saw him. He was almost as large as the chamber, despite its high ceiling and large ground area.  
  
"All right, you may approach him, but don't show any fear. Dragons can sense if a person is afraid or has evil intentions. So don't enter unless you're absolutely sure you're not going to panic," Charlie warned before he entered.  
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione followed him, a bit nervous, but they managed to summon up enough courage to go forward.  
  
"Hello Norbert, remember us?" Harry said, all his fears vanishing once he saw that Norbert wasn't about to attack them.  
  
Norbert growled softly and lowered his head in front of Harry who then petted him on the nose. Norbert responded by grunting in appreciation as Harry continued to pet him.  
  
"He remembers me," Harry said, smiling at Ron and Hermione. "Common, don't stand there, he's not going to bite us."  
  
Ron and Hermione approached, trying not to become afraid, and petted Norbert on the nose as Harry did. They also grinned happily as Norbert responded in the same way as he did with Harry.  
  
"Good job. It looks like he trusts you," Charlie said from behind them.  
  
They smiled at him and Hermione moved to pet Norbert again on the nose, however, Norbert's eyes suddenly flashed red and he let out a loud screech that echoed through the cavern. The sound startled everyone and Hermione barely dodged out of the way as Norbert snapped at her.  
  
"Hermione!" Ron yelled as he ran towards her.  
  
"Common you 3, MOVE!" Charlie shouted at them from the entrance.  
  
Ron helped Hermione up and they ran towards the entrance, but then Norbert blew a stream of fire at Harry. Harry managed to roll out of the way, but he didn't do so quickly enough and his pants caught on fire.  
  
"HARRY!" screamed Hermione when she saw him fall and catch on fire.  
  
"Enough! Ron - Hermione, go get some help!" exclaimed Charlie.  
  
"But -," Hermione was about to say.  
  
"GO! I'll try to keep him busy," Charlie yelled as he ran back into the cavern to get Harry while they ran down the tunnel to get some help.  
  
Meanwhile, Harry had managed to put himself out by rolling in the dirt and he noticed that Charlie was running towards him while firing stunning spells at Norbert. He made an attempt to get up, but Norbert's large tail came crashing down nearby causing him to fall to the ground again.  
  
*I hate to use my new abilities when Charlie's watching, but I can't help that now, * Harry thought as he drew out his wand.  
  
Harry rolled over onto his back and saw that Norbert's jaws were wide open and heading towards him. He quickly pointed his wand in front of him and said the spell for creating the force field. A swirling magical barrier appeared in front of him and Norbert's head smashed right into it.  
  
Norbert growled in pain after his head hit the barrier, but quickly recovered. He then swung his tail, which clipped Charlie in the head as he ran towards Harry, knocking him out.  
  
Harry, still lying on the ground under the shield, quickly pointed his wand at the ground and said "Orbis Terrarum," to summon the Earth Guardian. The water guardian would have been better against a fire- breathing dragon, but as there wasn't any water, the Earth Guardian was the next best thing.  
  
The earth where Harry was pointing his wand gathered up and a pair of legs took shape. Eventually the legs led to a torso with arms and finally a head formed, completing the guardian.  
  
*Your commands my master? * he heard the guardian say.  
  
"Keep the dragon busy, but don't kill him," he ordered the earth guardian and the Earth Guardian moved towards Norbert with its arms open. However, Norbert, seeing the new target, swung his tail at it hitting the Earth Guardian fully in the chest causing it to break apart.  
  
*Oh great, that didn't go too well. What I need is a distraction, * thought Harry as he summoned the Earth Guardian again.  
  
The guardian formed once again out of the dirt, but this time Harry pointed his wand at it and used the cloning spell to make several copies of the Earth Guardian. Now with several Guardians, Harry was able to get up off the ground and make his way to Charlie who was lying in the dirt out cold.  
  
In the mean time, the Earth Guardians had taken hold of Norbert's tail and held it in place. Norbert apparently realized that his tail was now paralyzed due to the Earth Guardians because he started blowing fire at them to no avail. Soon Norbert was exhausted from breathing fire at creatures that weren't affected by it and he started snapping at them with his powerful jaws.  
  
Harry afraid that the Guardians would be destroyed again lifted Charlie under the arm and limped towards the cavern entrance as quickly as possible.  
  
By now, two of the cloned guardians were destroyed after being crushed by Norbert and four of the guardians continued to hold his tail in place while three others attacked Norbert forcefully whenever his head came within range of their fists. Eventually Norbert became disoriented enough that the Earth Guardians could let go of his tail and they quickly overpowered him, knocking him out cold.  
  
Norbert's head came crashing down on two guardians, crushing them before hitting the floor as Harry exited the cavern with Charlie.  
  
Hearing the sound of Norbert hitting the ground behind him, Harry turned around to see that he was no longer a threat to anyone and that only half of his guardians remained.  
  
*The task has been completed master, you are safe, * the guardians said at the same time.  
  
"Thank you, please return until I call for you again," Harry replied, exhausted from having cast so many high level spells at on time, not to mention that his burns were not helping with his current state of weariness.  
  
The guardians disappeared and Harry collapsed against the wall of the entrance with Charlie beside him as Ron and Hermione returned with Percy and Arthur.  
  
Hermione screamed and immediately ran up to Harry when she saw him collapse while Percy and Arthur conjured up a stretcher and placed Charlie on it. They then went over to him and looked him over.  
  
"Harry, are you alright?" he heard Hermione ask.  
  
He nodded his head painfully as he was drained of all his energy.  
  
"Harry, what happened? How did you -" said a voice that Harry thought sounded like Arthur's.  
  
"Norbert - Hermione - " Harry said as his vision started to blur and he soon passed out from fatigue.  
  
  
  
A/N: All right, here's the chapter for this 24-hour period. Hope you like it since it actually has some action. 


	11. Chapter 10: Encounter in Diagon Alley

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters are property of J.K. Rowling  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 10: Encounter in Diagon Alley  
  
It was late afternoon when Harry finally came around, however instead of finding himself in a cave or at the inn where they were staying, he found himself lying in Ron's room at the Burrow. Hermione was sitting next to his bed, asleep with her favourite book, 'Hogwarts: A History,' in her lap. It looked like she hadn't slept for several days from the bags under her eyes.  
  
"Hermione?" he said turning his head to look at her. He thought it was very sweet of her to stay by him after he passed out from having spent all his energy summoning those Earth Guardians. Out of all the guardians, they took the most energy toll on the caster due to the fact that they were very hard to summon and control.  
  
When she didn't respond, he reached from where he was and touched her hand. She immediately jolted awake at the touch and when her eyes fell on Harry, she stood up, letting her book fall to the ground, went over to him and gave him a hug.  
  
"Hermione!" Harry said in surprise.  
  
"Oh Harry, I was so worried when you lost consciousness after fighting Nobert," she said still hugging him tightly as he laid in bed. "You used those Elemental spells again, didn't you?"  
  
"I had to. How else was I supposed to defeat a dragon all by myself? I didn't have my broom like I did in the Triwizard Tournament and the cavern wasn't big enough to really fly around in anyway."  
  
"If I didn't know any better, I'd say those spells were really hazardous to your health. You almost killed yourself casting those. You should be more careful," she said as she let go of him and scolded him as she usually did when he and Ron weren't doing their homework.  
  
Harry smiled at her and said, "Hermione, Charlie and I probably wouldn't be alive if I didn't use them. Be glad that I'm still alive, but please don't tell Ron about the elemental magic. He'd get really mad at me for keeping stuff from him."  
  
She smiled back before saying, "It wouldn't be the first time, but I won't tell him. I'll just say you got Nobert to knock himself out by hitting his head against the wall if he asks."  
  
"Thanks Hermione. Also, would you happen to know what happened to the barrier I cast and is Charlie alright?"  
  
"What barrier? We didn't notice anything when we went back in there other than the fact that Nobert had a lot of dirt on him. Charlie is fine, he was bleeding from his forehead when we got him, but he's alive thanks to you. Though I wonder what caused Nobert to go bezerk all of a sudden," she said thoughtfully.  
  
"Charlie did say that dragons could sense fear or evil in a person. It could be that since Vol- I mean, you-know-who transferred some of his dark energy to me when he failed to kill me, it's possible that Nobert could have sensed it and thought that we were going to hurt him. So he attacked us," Harry reasoned.  
  
"I suppose... Oh I almost forgot, you should get ready, we're going to Diagon alley in a bit to get our materials for the term. It starts next week. I'm so excited. I can't wait to get back to Hogwarts," Hermione said.  
  
"A WEEK? How long have I been out?" Harry asked, shocked at how much time passed.  
  
"You've been out for at least 5 days. Mrs. Weasley cut the trip short because she thought your state of being was more important. We used floo powder to get you back here instead of the portkey. Your leg was pretty badly burned, but she did a good job of healing it."  
  
"And you - I mean did you stay in here all five days since I've been here? Where's Charlie?" Harry asked.  
  
"Yes I did and Charlie is still in Romania. We thought that you would get better care here than over there and Charlie doesn't know about your elemental magic. I made sure of it," Hermione said smiling.  
  
"Thanks Hermione. I appreciate it."  
  
"You're welcome," she said, blushing. "Now you really owe me a lesson in elemental magic."  
  
"I said I'd give you one, but since there's a lot of people around, I haven't been able to transform or use any of the elemental magic unless it's a life or death situation."  
  
"Fine, I'll wait until we get to Hogwarts. Now get changed. Your clothes are in your trunk," Hermione said as she walked out of the room.  
  
Harry got out of bed and changed out of his burned clothing into a pair of new pants and a dark blue shirt. As he changed, he noticed that the burns on his right leg had healed completely and there were no scars. Once finished, he grabbed his wand and his bag of money from his trunk before going downstairs.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When Harry got downstairs, he saw that Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Mrs. Weasley were waiting. Ron was overjoyed to see that he had recovered from his injuries and greeted him enthusiastically.  
  
"Hey mate, how are you feeling? Nice to see you up and around." Ron said clapping him on the back.  
  
"I'm doing just fine thanks to you, Mrs. Weasley," Harry replied turning to Mrs. Weasley who was standing next to the fireplace with what looked like a bag of floo powder.  
  
"You're welcome dear. We were all so worried when we heard that you had collapsed when you got out of the cave," Mrs. Weasley said.  
  
"Hey Harry, how did you manage to knock out Nobert? It normally takes several grown wizards to even subdue one dragon," Ron said.  
  
"I had him chase me around until he hit his head against the wall and knocked himself out," Harry said, using the story Hermione made up earlier.  
  
"Really? That's bloody brilliant! Too bad you couldn't use that one during the Triwizard Tournament. It would have been really funny," said Ron, taking Harry's story at face value.  
  
"Yeah, it would have been great," Harry said, not convinced.  
  
"Well, let's get going so we can get back before evening," said Mrs. Weasley, breaking up the conversation. "We're going to use floo powder to get there, so here you go."  
  
They stood in front of the fireplace and took a pinch of floo powder from Mrs. Weasley.  
  
Harry went first and tossed the floo powder into the fireplace, yelling "Diagon Alley" before walking in.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A few seconds later, he found himself in the cellar of Flourish and Blotts and Ron and Hermione soon followed with Molly Weasley and Ginny.  
  
"Alright, now let's go upstairs and get your things. We'll meet back here in about 2 hours. You have all your lists?" Molly Weasley asked.  
  
"Oh great, I didn't bring my list," said Harry with a panicked look on his face.  
  
"Don't worry, your books are the same as mine, so you can use my list," said Ron.  
  
"Thanks," Harry said as they walked upstairs to the bookstore.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they got upstairs, Harry, Hermione, and Ron looked around for their books while Ginny went with Molly Weasley to get her things. They were taking the usual subjects, Transfiguration, Potions, Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Care of Magical Creatures, History of Magic, and Divination (Hermione took Arithmancy and Runes), however, this year, they also had an additional class: Duelling & Defense.  
  
It took them about an hour to find all their books as some of them tried to hide from view whenever they came near them and they had to go digging through the shelves to find them. When Harry, Ron, and Hermione finally emerged from the shop, each carrying a load of books in their bag, and headed towards the Apothecary to get their potions supplies. However, along the way, Ron insisted that they stopped by the Quidditch Supplies shop to look at the latest brooms.  
  
"Look Harry, it's the latest broom," Ron said, pointing at the store window. "The SilverSwift. It's supposedly faster than even the firebolt and those are pretty quick as they are."  
  
"Ron - Harry, let's go, we still need to go get our potions supplies and we now have less than an hour because you two can't stop gazing at the brooms," Hermione said reprovingly.  
  
Harry moved on, but since Ron didn't budge, they both dragged him by the collar, even as he was shouting "let me go," down the street to the Apothecary.  
  
Once in the Apothecary, Harry and Hermione finally let go of Ron and they searched for about 15 minutes before finding what they needed. During that time Ron brought up the new dueling class.  
  
"What do you think the dueling class will be like?" Ron asked Harry.  
  
"I don't know, I just hope that it doesn't end up to be a joke like that dueling club Lockhart started," Harry stated. Gilderoy Lockhart was their Defense Against the Dark Arts professor their second year at Hogwarts and he turned out to be a joke since he didn't really know what he was doing.  
  
"I do hope we get a good Dark Arts teacher this year," Hermione join in.  
  
"Yeah, maybe Professor Lupin will come back. He was really good, or maybe the real Mad-Eye Moody," Ron said happily. The Mad-Eye Moody they had last year turned out to be one of Voldemort's more zealous supporters, Barty Crouch, who used a polyjuice potion to get into Hogwarts and he subjected them to learning all sorts of curses, including the unforgivable curses during their Dark Arts class.  
  
"Well, I think that should do it for our potions supplies," Hermione said, grabbing a jar full of Cyclops eyes.  
  
They went to the counter to pay for their supplies and exited the store. That was when they saw a large black dog running towards them.  
  
"Hello Snuffles, fancy seeing you here," Hermione said, petting the dog on the head, who returned her affection by licking her hand.  
  
The dog gave them a small growl and went into an alley with the trio following.  
  
Once they got into the alley, the dog transformed into Sirius Black who gave them all a big hug.  
  
"Hello you three. What are you doing here and how have you been?" said Sirius.  
  
"We're doing fine. We're just getting our school supplies," said Harry.  
  
"That's great. I didn't expect to see you here. I was going to owl you, but since you're here, I might as well tell you some of the news."  
  
"What news?" asked Hermione with a curious look on her face.  
  
"Well, I've been lying low at Remus' place, and I've managed to contact the old crowd that Dumbledore wanted to get a hold of. They'll be in Hogwarts this year and you t-," Sirius was about to finish but he was cut off by Harry.  
  
"That's great Sirius. It'll be great to meet some new people this year," Harry said quickly. He didn't want Sirius to reveal the Order of the Phoenix to Ron for fear that he would spread it around the school. Ron was a really good friend, but when it came to keeping information, he had a loud mouth and didn't really think before he said anything.  
  
"Something wrong Harry? You don't sound like yourself," Sirius asked.  
  
"He just defeated a dragon all by himself a few days ago and he's still recovering, so don't feel bad if he's feeling edgy," Hermione said, covering for Harry. He would be sure to thank her for that later.  
  
"Really now? That's a great accomplishment. I'm proud of you Harry. I've never heard of anyone take on a dragon by himself and come out alive," Sirius said, beaming at him and patting him on the back.  
  
"Thanks Sirius," Harry said, turning red in embarrassment.  
  
"Sirius, did you hear of the new dueling class at school? Why didn't they have that in previous years and how come the Dark Arts class isn't doing it?" Hermione asked, wanting more information about her new classes.  
  
"Hermione, only you would be curious about your classes," Ron said sarcastically.  
  
"Shut up Ron, you're supposed to be a prefect this year. I just hope you'll be able to set a good example for the other students," she countered.  
  
"Hey, how did you know I was a prefect this year? I never told you," he giving her a quizzical look.  
  
"It was mentioned in the letters who the other prefect was. Honestly, don't you ever read them?" Hermione said, now glaring at Ron.  
  
"Is there anything going on between those two?" Sirius whispered to Harry, grinning.  
  
"No, they're always like that," he said, though he too suspected something might be going on that he wasn't aware of and it hurt him to think of Hermione with Ron, but he didn't say anything.  
  
"Oh I see," he said under his breath before answering Hermione's question. "Well, to answer your question Hermione, Dumbledore told me that there was a new dueling class and that he would find someone to teach it, but he didn't tell me why or who the new teacher was. One thing I'm sure of, Remus isn't teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts or dueling."  
  
"Oh darn, I was hoping that he would be teaching it this year. He was such a good teacher in our third year," Hermione said now as disappointed as Harry was that Professor Lupin wouldn't be teaching any classes this year.  
  
"Anyway, I need to go now so I'll see you three at Hogwarts. Bye," Sirius said before he transformed back into the dog and disappeared into the crowd while Harry, Ron, and Hermione made their way back to Flourish and Blotts.  
  
~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~  
  
  
  
A/N: I think this chapter was written better than the last one. The previous chapter, I plan to redo. I can't believe I let the quality deteriorate ugh. It really annoyed me, but at least the quality of this chapter is up to the par of the previous chapters. Hope you enjoyed it.  
  
To everyone who reviewed: Thank you so much. 


	12. Chapter 11: The Order of the Phoenix

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling  
  
  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 11: The Order of the Phoenix  
  
Soon it was the start of the term again and the trio made their way to King's Cross Station with the rest of the Weasleys. When they got to the barrier between platforms nine and ten, Mrs. Weasley sent them through two at a time, so that they didn't attract too much attention, before going through the barrier herself.  
  
On the other side of the barrier Harry saw that the scarlet steam engine was already waiting, but he also noticed that there were a lot more parents on the platform, saying good bye to their children, than usual. Probably because they heard that Voldemort had returned and wanted to make sure that their children made it to the school safely he thought.  
  
"Hurry up, let's get our things onboard. We don't want to be late for our train," Hermione said, pushing her trolley to the end of the train where all the baggage was kept.  
  
"Take care Harry, and Ron, you better set a good example for the other students," Mrs. Weasley called after them.  
  
"Good bye Mrs. Weasley. Thank you for letting me stay over for the summer," Harry said before he followed Hermione to the back of the train with Ron.  
  
Once all their things were stored aboard, they made their way to their usual compartment carrying their robes. Once there, they took turns waiting outside while Harry, Ron and Hermione changed into their school robes. Both Ron and Hermione were prefects and therefore were wearing their badges.  
  
After they had finished changing, they sat in the compartment and Harry and Ron talked between themselves about Quidditch since Hermione had pulled out one of her textbooks and started reading it. Eventually the train started moving and Hermione closed her book.  
  
"Ron, we need to go to the front of the train to meet the other prefects," Hermione said getting up from her seat.  
  
"Alright, we'll see you later ok Harry?" said Ron as he opened the compartment door and walked outside.  
  
"Don't worry Harry, we'll come back," Hermione said reassuringly and she closed the compartment door behind her.  
  
Harry now had the compartment to himself and he felt quite lonely without Ron or Hermione so he looked out the window lost in his thoughts of what the year would be like until a knock on the compartment door drew him back into reality.  
  
He turned his head back to the compartment door and when it opened; it revealed Cho Chang who was already dressed in her black robes.  
  
"Hi Harry," she said, smiling. "Can I join you? I don't have anywhere to sit right now."  
  
"Sure," he replied and smiled back at her.  
  
"Thanks," she said as she sat down across from Harry. "Where are your friends who are usually with you?"  
  
"Ron and Hermione? They're prefects so they're up in the front of the train meeting with the others."  
  
"Oh, how come you didn't get to be a prefect? I'm sure your grades were good enough."  
  
"I don't know. Maybe Professor McGonagall didn't want to play favourites this year and so she picked Ron. He deserves it though. He's been living under the shadow of his brothers for years now. I think it's about time he got to stand in the spotlight for once."  
  
"I see - So Harry, how was your summer? I hope that you haven't been troubled too much by Cedric's death. It must have been hard on you during the summer having to live with it," Cho said, looking at the ground. She looked like she was almost about to cry at the thought Cedric's death.  
  
"I've been doing well Cho. As much as it's true I've had some nightmares about the event I don't think that it's anything for you to worry about," Harry said trying his best to avoid looking like he was feeling guilty.  
  
"I'm sorry that I brought it up. I had no idea -," Cho said before bursting into tears.  
  
"Cedric died a hero Cho, and I want you to know he didn't suffer at all when he died. Besides, Cedric wouldn't want you to feel sad. He'd want you to move on with your life and not dwell too long on the past," Harry said comfortingly and he moved over to sit next to Cho and put his arm around her. She cried into his shoulder and Harry was starting to feel really guilty for answering her question. Unfortunately for him, that was also when Ron burst into the compartment.  
  
"Hey Harry, guess wh -," Ron was about to say before he saw Cho crying with Harry's arm around her. "Oh, hi Cho. Hey, what's wrong with her?"  
  
"Don't ask Ron and it's not what you think," Harry said, looking up at Ron.  
  
"Oh really.," Ron said with a sly grin on his face. "Wait until I tell Hermione about this."  
  
"Ron, wa -," he started to say before Ron ran out of the compartment and shut the door behind him.  
  
*Oh great. There goes my chance with Hermione. Ron, that stupid git. Now the entire school will think something's up and I'll never hear the end of it, * he thought to himself before turning his attention back to Cho.  
  
"Are you alright Cho?" he asked her.  
  
She looked up at him and nodded before leaning her head against his shoulder again. She had stopped sobbing and started to dry her tears when there was yet another interruption. This time it was Malfoy with his goons, Crabbe and Goyle, behind him.  
  
"Hey there Potter. How come Weasley and that mudblood Granger aren't in here with you?" he asked with a malicious look on his face. "Did your mudblood girlfriend decide to dump you for Weasley? His taste in girls is about as bad as yours," he said with a sneer.  
  
"Stuff it Malfoy before I curse you off this train," Harry said, glaring at him. Normally he would ignore it, but insulting Hermione touched a nerve.  
  
"Oh I don't think so Potter. See this?" he said pointing to his prefect's badge.  
  
"It's a prefect's badge. Attacking a prefect will get you instantly expelled. I'm surprised you didn't become a prefect, then again maybe McGonagall finally came to her senses and stopped rewarding you just because of who you are. I'm sure that you fed Dumbledore that story of Voldemort returning and what happened to Cedric. I really think that you set up the whole thing up so that you could kill him because he took Cho to the Yule ball instead of you. That old coot will -," Malfoy was about to continue, but didn't get the chance.  
  
Harry was about to draw out his wand to curse Malfoy when a red beam of light flashed through the compartment hitting Malfoy squarely in the chest. Malfoy started to glow red for a while before the glow subsided and he returned to normal. When he looked around, he saw that Cho was sitting up with her wand drawn and pointed at Malfoy.  
  
"What was that Cho? Is that the best you can do? That curse didn't even work correctly. I wonder what Cedric ever saw in you," said Malfoy laughing.  
  
"Oh it worked. Just look at your two goons standing next to you," Cho said smirking at Malfoy.  
  
Malfoy turned and looked at Crabbe and Goyle, only that they looked enraged and were raising their fists to strike at him.  
  
"Hey, what's wrong with you two? You dare to turn on me? I'll -," Malfoy said as he prepared to draw out his wand. Except that he didn't do so fast enough and a fist from Crabbe struck him across his face and Harry could hear a crack as Malfoy's nose broke, drawing blood, which trickled down the side of his face.  
  
"Oof," he said as another fist from Goyle struck him in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him.  
  
Crabbe and Goyle continued to attack Malfoy until he was on the floor, bloodied and knocked out cold before they came to their senses. They then noticed that Malfoy was on the ground beside them and they quickly dragged him out of the compartment.  
  
"If he ever comes back in here and insults Cedric's memory, I'll be sure he gets more than a broken nose," Cho said, fuming.  
  
"That was very interesting Cho. What was it?" Harry asked as he stood up and closed the compartment door returned to his seat.  
  
"It's a curse called 'Confusion.' It makes the people closest to person you cast it on, think that they're their worst enemy and attack them. It comes in handy if you're outnumbered and need a distraction," Cho said before she waved her wand and made all of Malfoy's blood in their compartment disappear.  
  
"Well, I can't say Malfoy didn't have that coming to him. Beaten up by his own goons no less," Harry said laughing as he sat down again. "Thanks to you Cho, I won't get into trouble for attacking a prefect and Malfoy got what he deserved."  
  
"You're welcome," she said now smiling.  
  
They chatted for the remainder of the trip to Hogwarts and Harry started wondering why Ron and Hermione hadn't come back. Probably because Ron told Hermione that he was trying to get together with Cho, when really he was only trying to offer her support.  
  
*I'm going to kill him later, * he thought to himself.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When the train finally arrived at Hogwarts, he said good bye to Cho and exited the train where he saw that Hagrid was waiting for the first years so that they could make the traditional trip across the lake. He also noticed Malfoy being carried off the train on a stretcher followed by his two goons. Apparently they hurt him a lot more than Harry thought at first.  
  
"Firs' years this way!" Hagrid yelled across the platform before he spotted Harry and smiled. "All right there Harry?"  
  
Harry just waved and smiled at him from a distance, not wanting to draw attention to himself, and started looking for Ron and Hermione. He saw them over by the horseless carriages and went over to meet them.  
  
"Hi Ron - Hermione," he said as he came up behind them. "What happened? I thought you two were going to come back to the compartment on the train."  
  
"Oh, sorry, I thought you might want some time alone with Cho," Hermione said.  
  
"What would make you think I wan - Ron, this has something to do with you doesn't it," Harry said glaring at him.  
  
"Sorry," he said, grinning sheepishly.  
  
"What do you mean?" Hermione said, now turning to face him with a disapproving look on her face.  
  
"Uh. I was going to ask Harry to come and join us in the prefect's compartment, but when I entered, I saw Cho leaning on Harry's shoulder, crying," Ron said as they got into the carriage.  
  
"So why did you tell me that Harry was trying to get with Cho?" Hermione asked irritably.  
  
"Hey, that's what it looked like to me," Ron said defensively.  
  
"Honestly Ron, stop making up stories. For all I know, the entire school will think Harry's going around with Cho."  
  
"I said I was sorry," said Ron apologetically  
  
"Enough. So what did you two talk about, Harry?" Hermione asked and for the remainder of the trip, Harry told them about his chat with Cho and about what she did to Malfoy. Both Ron and Hermione doubled over in laughter at the news that Malfoy was beaten senseless by his own goons.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Once they got to the entrance at Hogwarts, they exited the carriages and made their way to the Great Hall where the sorting ceremony was to take place.  
  
When they got to the Great Hall, Harry noticed that there were some students gawking at him and looking at his scar from the tables as he walked down to the Gryffindor table. It really made him uncomfortable, but he kept walking towards the table.  
  
He looked around at the teacher's table for any sign of the new Dark Arts teacher and the Duelling teacher. He saw Dumbledore sitting in the middle of the table with Professor Flitwick to his right, followed by Professor Sprout and Professor Vector. At the far left of the table was Professor Snape, with the same greasy hair that he always had. Did Snape finally get the Dark Arts job? It would be a nightmare for Harry if he did since Snape always did favour his own house, Slytherin. However, Harry looked to the right of Snape and noticed that there were four chairs, one of them currently occupied by Hagrid, who had just come in, and the other, to the left of Dumbledore, obviously reserved for Professor McGonagall. The remaining two were then for the duelling teacher and for the new Potions teacher or the Dark Arts teacher, provided that Snape didn't get the job.  
  
Harry sat in between Ron and Hermione and soon, Professor McGonagall ushered the first year students in.  
  
Professor McGonagall told the first years to wait in the middle of the room while she went to get the sorting hat. Harry noted that most of the first years looked really nervous standing in the middle of the Great Hall with all of the students looking at them. She soon came back with the sorting hat and placed it on the stool. The hat then came to life and started singing a song:  
  
You may think that I'm not pretty,  
  
But don't judge me before you try me on.  
  
You can keep your hats,  
  
For you will never find a smarter hat than me,  
  
The Hogwarts Sorting Hat.  
  
There's nothing you can hide from me,  
  
So try me on and I'll tell you where you ought to be.  
  
You may belong in Gryffindor,  
  
Where the brave at heart dwell,  
  
Or perhaps in Hufflepuff,  
  
Where the just and loyal always have a place,  
  
If you've got a keen sense of wit and learning,  
  
You'll find yourself welcome in Ravenclaw.  
  
Or even in Slytherin for the cunning among you,  
  
Who are not afraid to use any means to achieve their ends.  
  
So try me on! Don't be afraid!  
  
For I won't bite.  
  
The hall burst into applause and some of the first years, Harry noted, started to relax. Then Professor McGonagall pulled out a scroll and ordered the first years to step forward when their names were called, put on the hat, and sit in the stool.  
  
"Burns, David!" she said and a blonde haired boy stepped forward, put on the hat, and sat in the stool.  
  
"Slytherin!" shouted the hat.  
  
Only the Slytherins cheered while the other three tables were less than delighted. Harry looked over at the Slytherin table as the boy ran over and he noticed that Malfoy and his two goons were missing. Probably in the infirmary recovering from the beating he received on the train, he thought.  
  
"Char, Isrand!"  
  
"Slytherin!" shouted the hat, and everyone in the hall groaned while the Slytherins cheered again.  
  
"Davis, Catilin!"  
  
"Ravenclaw!"  
  
This time everyone cheered, for one less Slytherin was always something to be happy about.  
  
"Drakon, Melody!"  
  
"Hufflepuff!"  
  
"Edin, Lyonis!"  
  
"Gryffindor!" the hat shouted and a small boy with brown hair ran to the Gryffindor table as everyone cheered him.  
  
After a while, the sorting ceremony was finished and Gryffindor had 8 new students, Hufflepuff with 10, Ravenclaw with the least, 6, and finally Slytherin, with the most, 12. Harry was quite disappointed. With the return of Voldemort, he expected that more students would become afraid and not want to be placed in Slytherin.  
  
Professor McGonagall took away the hat and Dumbledore stood up. He cleared his throat and he made sure that all the students were paying attention before he spoke.  
  
"I'm sorry to bother you with an old man's rambling, but I have a few announcements. First of all, the forbidden forest is out of bounds to all students. Second, I would like you all to know that due to Voldemort's (at which everyone flinched, except Harry) return, no student is allowed outside the school without a fifth year or higher escorting them. Third, there will be a duelling class offered this year which all students second year and above will take so that should you need to, you will be able to defend yourselves. Now, one last announcement before you stuff yourselves full of this delicious food. I would like to introduce the duelling professor and the new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor."  
  
He sat down and a door opened off to the side. Two men walked into the great hall. Many of the students gasped in horror at the sight of them as the first one that strode in was dressed entirely in black and had a black cape flowing behind him with a ruby encrusted, golden cape clasp that Harry recognized. He also carried a broadsword sheathed in a black case at his side. The second was also dressed entirely in black, only that he had a skull on either shoulder and was wearing black plate armour with a stylet at his side.  
  
Harry nudged Hermione, who was also looking at them with fear, and she nodded nervously.  
  
Both men walked to their seats, the sound of their boots echoing through the silent hall, and the man wearing the black armour sat down. The other remained standing and spoke in a deep voice that commanded respect from everyone in the hall, including the Slytherins. However Snape looked less than pleased and glared at them from his seat.  
  
"Good evening everyone," he said. "My name is Count Vladimir Sepet and I will be teaching your duelling class this year. I look forward to see how well each of you do and I hope that you will all gain something out of the class."  
  
Once the Count finished his short speech, he sat down and the other man stood up. He too commanded respect from everyone, but unlike the Count, he drew more fearful stares from the students.  
  
"Hello everyone," he said cheerfully, which surprised many of the students, as they were expecting him to be more like the Count based on his attire. "I will be teaching your Defence Against the Dark Arts class. For those of you who are unfamiliar with me, my name is Walter Laikov and I am what some of you would call a necromancer. However, you don't need to fear me since I won't be turning any of you into the undead."  
  
He then sat down and Dumbledore stood up once again.  
  
"Now that we are done with the introduction, by all means, let us feast," he said with his eyes twinkling.  
  
He waved his hands and platters of food appeared at each table. The hall broke into chatter as the students ate happily. It appeared that they had forgotten about the two new teachers sitting at the table.  
  
"Harry, this must have been what the Count meant when he would see us again," Hermione whispered to him.  
  
He nodded and looked back at the table. Walter was trying to converse with Snape, who was scowling the whole time and Hagrid was deep in conversation with the Count. He noted that the Count had a plate in front of him full something that looked a bit raw to Harry.  
  
*The Count has really strange taste in food, * Harry thought as Ron started asking him about the man sitting next to Walter.  
  
"Hey Harry, is guy sitting next to Walter the Count you guys were talking about in Romania?" Ron said, stuffing himself full of roast chicken.  
  
"Yes, he's the one who owns the castle we passed on the way to see Charlie."  
  
"I wonder what he's like," Ron said.  
  
"He certainly is well mannered, but I don't know if he'd be a really good teacher," Hermione cut in.  
  
"Really Hermione, can't you think of anything else but school," Ron said.  
  
"If you cared more about school than you did about food, you'd be getting better grades than me. Honestly, I don't know if you really were a good idea to put as a prefect," Hermione said sarcastically.  
  
"I'll prove to you I can by the end of this year that I can be a better prefect than you," Ron retorted.  
  
"We'll see about that one," Hermione challenged.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When dinner was over, Professor McGonagall came over to the Gryffindor table and called them.  
  
"Potter! Granger! Follow me. The Headmaster would like a word with both of you. Weasley, you can take the first years to the tower. I trust you won't get lost," she said sternly.  
  
"First years, follow me. I'll lead you to your dorms," Ron called as Harry and Hermione followed Professor McGonagall out of the hall.  
  
Harry and Hermione talked along the way about what Dumbledore could possibly want with them, until they remembered the letter that Dumbledore sent them during the summer. They were finally going to meet the members of the Order of the Phoenix.  
  
When the got to the gargoyle statue outside of Dumbledore's office, Professor McGonagall said the password, which turned out to be 'Lemon Drops,' and the gargoyle moved aside.  
  
They took the spiral staircase that was moving smoothly upwards, and allowed it to carry them to Dumbledore's office.  
  
Once they got there, they opened the door and saw that Professor Dumbledore was already waiting behind his desk and there were a total of 21 chairs gathered in a circle around the room. The fireplace was roaring and Fawkes, who was sitting perched behind the door as usual, flew to Dumbledore and sat on his shoulder as Harry and Hermione went to sit next to each other by the fireplace.  
  
"Hello Harry - Miss Granger," Dumbledore said cheerfully. "You probably already know why you're here, but no matter, we will start shortly once all the members are here."  
  
"Ah Minerva, please have a seat," Dumbledore continued, waving to a chair next to him.  
  
Professor McGonagall sat down to the left of Dumbledore and a few seconds later, the door to Dumbledore's office opened to reveal Remus Lupin, followed by a large black dog, which Harry recognized as Sirius.  
  
"Hello Professor Lupin," Harry and Hermione said at the same time.  
  
"Hello you two," he replied smiling at them. "It's just Remus now. I'm no longer a professor due to my, er, unique ability."  
  
"It's ok. We missed you. Hello Sirius," Harry said, and the black dog changed into Sirius Black.  
  
"Hello Harry - Hermione. I told you I'd see you again," he said giving them both a hug and sat down in between Professor McGonagall and Remus.  
  
The door opened once again and two people entered. One elderly man dressed in dark brown robes and an elderly woman dressed in emerald green robes. She looked almost too familiar to Harry.  
  
"Mrs. Figg?" he asked in shock. In fact, Harry had fallen out of his seat because he didn't expect to see his old babysitter anywhere near Hogwarts.  
  
"Miss Figg," she corrected and smiled at him. "Hello Harry, I thought I might see you here, but please just call me Arabella."  
  
"I didn't expect to see you here either," Harry said, getting up off the floor. "Why didn't you tell me that you were a witch during all the times that I stayed over at your house and why did you make me look through pictures of all those ridiculous cats?"  
  
"Well," Arabella said chuckling. "I really couldn't let you know who I was yet since it could have been disastrous if You-Know-Who figured I was a witch and that you were staying at my place. As for the pictures of the cats, I didn't really know what to keep you occupied with. At least I faked breaking my leg on Dudley's birthday in hopes that the Dursleys would take you along for once. Did they take you anywhere?"  
  
"Yeah, they did. We went to the zoo and I set a boa constrictor on Dudley. It was really fun. Thank you Miss Figg," Harry said, now laughing at the memory of the horror on Dudley's face when the boa constrictor came near him.  
  
"You're welcome dear," she said and she took a seat on the other side of Remus.  
  
"So she's your babysitter? You never said anything about that before and who's he?" Hermione asked Harry, pointing at the elderly man who had sat down next to Arabella Figg.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't get to introduce myself. I'm Mundungus Fletcher, a good friend of Dumbledore's. It's an honour to finally meet you both. I've heard of your exploits against the dark lord and how you've always managed to come out in one piece no less," he said, apparently overhearing Hermione's question.  
  
Harry now looked uncomfortable from the attention he was getting from him, but fortunately the door burst opened once more, only this time it was a very infuriated looking Snape. He went up to Dumbledore and immediately started to talk in a tone that was obviously full of rage.  
  
"Professor, you know that I normally don't question your judgement, but what were you thinking inviting those two to Hogwarts?" he said enraged.  
  
"Serverus," Dumbledore said calmly. "I know how you feel, but Professor Sepet and Professor Laikov are serving as our agents in the International Ministry of Magic. It is important that we keep tabs on everything that is going on in the world. After all, Voldemort (at which Snape flinched) will not just be content to concentrate here on Hogwarts. At any rate, those two are among the best aurors that the International Ministry has to offer. Their methods may be, er, questionable, but there's no denying their efficiency in keeping Voldemort's (Snape flinches again) followers out of his territory. I just ask you to please bide by my judgment despite your reservations."  
  
"I wonder what Dumbledore meant by questionable," Harry whispered to Hermione as they saw the conversation between Dumbledore and Snape.  
  
"I think its obvious Harry. Remember Walter's a necromancer. How many people do you know of that use the dark arts to fight the dark arts without being corrupted by them?" she whispered back.  
  
"None I guess," he said and he turned his attention back to the conversation.  
  
"There is also the matter of the conduct of some of the students in the Order. Mr. Malfoy has been sent to the infirmary by his own goons. It looked like a confusion curse. My sources say that Miss Chang was the one who placed it on him," Snape continued.  
  
"Very well, I'll see to it myself. Now please have a seat," Dumbledore said and Snape went to sit down next to Mundungus Fletcher.  
  
Eventually the door opened once again and Professor Flitwick entered with Professor Laikov and Professor Sepet. They sat down in the three empty seats to the right of Dumbledore and now the room was half full. There were only 10 seats left to be filled.  
  
Once they were seated, the door opened one last time and Harry saw Bill, Arthur, and Percy Weasley, followed by five students that Harry all recognized, enter the room. Cho Chang, Terry Boot, from Ravenclaw, Hannah Abbott and Justin Finch-Fletchley, from Hufflepuff, and Blaise Zabini from Slytherin. If there was supposed to be one more student from Slytherin, it must be Malfoy, Harry thought, but he was in the infirmary. Finally, a familiar clunking sound of wood on stone came and Harry saw the real Mad- Eye Moody enter the room. He looked just like Barty Crouch last year, after he took the polyjuice potion with his wooden leg and eye that could see in all directions, including through invisibility cloaks.  
  
Cho sat down on the other side of Harry with Terry sitting next to her.  
  
"Hello Harry, looks like I'll be working with you," Cho said, smiling while Hermione, looking straight ahead, scowled.  
  
When the rest of the members sat down, Dumbledore stood up and walked to the middle of the room before speaking.  
  
"Now that everyone is present, except for Mr. Malfoy who is in the infirmary, I would like to begin. As you all know, this year, I wanted to form the Order of the Phoenix to resist Voldemort's (at which everyone, but Harry, flinched as usual) new reign of terror. Therefore I have gathered my old group, Remus Lupin, Sirus Black (everyone gasped in surprise at the mention of Sirus), Arabella Figg, and Mundungus Fletcher to represent the wizarding community and provide extra protection for this school," Dumbledore said, motioning at the four seated to the left of Professor McGonagall.  
  
"I have also gathered two members of the International Ministry of Magic, and Professor Sepet and Professor Laikov are the aurors representing them. For the Ministry of Magic of England, I have Mad-Eye Moody, Bill, Percy, and Arthur Weasley. For the school itself, Minerva and Professor Flitwick are present, along with Serverus who will be acting as our spy and keep us up to date on the dark lord's actions. We may have Rubeus Hagrid, come and join us later to report on his mission I sent him on during the summer. Finally, I have 8 students to represent the student community here at Hogwarts, two from each house," Dumbledore continued, now pacing the room within the circle.  
  
"As part of the Order of the Phoenix, you are all sworn to secrecy and that you will carry out your duties as part of this order faithfully," Dumbledore finished. "Now that you're done listening to my rambling, there is only one order of business before you are dismissed. Serverus, could you please inform us of the information you've collected."  
  
"As you wish headmaster," Snape said standing up. "During the summer, I returned to the dark lord under the guise that I had some information for him, however while I was there, I stumbled upon some information that concerns Mr. Potter and this school. Apparently the dark lord has made Mr. Potter his primary target, but he doesn't stop there. He has also been trying to look for ways to enhance his powers quickly so that he can finally overrun all those who would oppose him. Unfortunately, I do not have enough information to know what else he could possibly be planning. "  
  
Snape sat down and Dumbledore stood up once again.  
  
"Thank you Serverus, but I will have to ask you to continue to gather information for us. No doubt the dark lord has asked you to return with some information, so I will give you information that you will present to him. Please see me later regarding that. Now, I have kept you up all long enough. You are all dismissed. However, I would like all the student members of the Order to remain. Professor Flitwick will show you to your rooms."  
  
Everyone, except for the seven students in the room, got up and walked out of the room with Professor Flitwick in the lead chatting happily with Walter. The door closed and the students returned their attention to Dumbledore.  
  
"I'm sorry to have to keep you up later than usual, but I must first ask a question," Dumbledore said, now facing Harry.  
  
"Harry, now that you know that the dark lord has made you the target of his wrath, is there anything that I can do to help you?" he asked.  
  
"Uh, I've encountered him four times in the past and have managed to survive all of them. I'm not feeling uncomfortable with the fact that he wants to kill me since he's wanted to do that for years and I've learned to live with it by now, but thank you for the offer," Harry said as best he could without trying to feel uneasy. Hermione looked over at him encouragingly and he visibly relaxed.  
  
"Very well, but if you need anything, you will know where to go," Dumbledore replied before looking at everyone again. "Now, the seven of you, as part of this order, must not mention anything you hear in here to anyone, not even your best friends. Times like these are very trying and even the person whom you trust the most can turn on you if he is given the proper motive. There are also those among you who you may hold a grudge against. I ask you that you put those aside and that you work together despite your differences. Remember, unity is the key to being able to stand up to the dark lord. United we will triumph, divided, we will fall."  
  
"Now, do you all promise to keep this secret and serve the Order faithfully?" he asked them all.  
  
"We do," the seven of them replied in unison.  
  
"Excellent, now two more things before you are all dismissed. The first is that should we meet again, you will be owled a piece of paper with a phoenix on it and finally, since you eight, once we have Mr. Malfoy back with us, are going to be part of this Order, I have placed you in the advanced duelling class with Professor Sepet. This way, you will be able to learn more advanced methods of defending yourselves. That is all, good night" Dumbledore said, his eyes twinkling in the firelight.  
  
The seven of them got up and walked downstairs to their respective towers and along the way, Harry talked with Hermione about what they had just seen.  
  
"So, what do you think?" he asked her.  
  
"I don't know, I think that this is a great idea that he formed the order, but I don't agree with putting you in harm's way," Hermione said with a look that was torn between worry and anger.  
  
"I don't think Dumbledore will really let me go up against You-Know- Who unprepared. I mean he's given me enough help to survive all of my encounters with him. I think he'll do so again."  
  
"Still, you should be careful. Remember the mirror in the Count's castle? We don't know what You-Know-Who is planning and the Count is here, in the Order no less. How do we know that he's not working as a spy for him like Snape is doing for Dumbledore."  
  
"We don't, but we'll keep an eye on him as well. Maybe Cho and the other students can help."  
  
"Oh? You sure you don't fancy her?" Hermione said, giving Harry a sly look.  
  
"Yes, I'm sure," he replied, looking at her. "She just happened to be in the order and she was really upset earlier about Cedric's death, though I think she's gotten over it."  
  
"What about Malfoy? We can't trust him or that other Slytherin."  
  
"You're right, but we still have to work with them."  
  
By now, they got to the portrait outside their tower, they saw that Professor McGonagall was waiting for them.  
  
"There you are. It's about time the headmaster dismissed you. It's past your bedtime. The password is 'cometissa," she said and the portrait of the Fat Lady swung open.  
  
They went in and they saw that Ron was waiting in the common room, sitting on the couch. He saw them and went over to greet them.  
  
"What took you guys so long?" he asked sleepily.  
  
"We wanted to see if we could sign up for some new classes," Hermione lied.  
  
"Both of you?" he asked with a hint of jealousy in his voice, but Hermione ignored it. "So what classes did you sign up for?"  
  
"We couldn't because there wasn't enough time," Harry threw in.  
  
"I'm sure Hermione's disappointed," Ron said caustically.  
  
"Yes I am, now I'm going up to bed. Good night," she said glaring at Ron and walked up to the girls' dormitories  
  
"Good night Hermione," Harry called after her and he followed Ron up to the boys' dormitories.  
  
"Really, she can be very troublesome sometimes," Ron said, on the way up.  
  
"Well, it's not like you're helping the situation either," Harry said, defending Hermione.  
  
"Since when did you take such interest in Hermione?" Ron asked demandingly.  
  
"She is my friend as much as yours, Ron, I wouldn't be much of a friend if I didn't look out for her interests as well," Harry replied calmly.  
  
With that, he opened the door to the dorm, walked in, and closed the door behind him leaving Ron outside to think about what he had just said.  
  
He saw that everyone was already asleep, so he changed into his pajamas, closed the curtains and lay down in bed thinking of Hermione. It was a while before he went to sleep.  
  
  
  
A/N: Sorry that this took more than 24 hours, but I think it's one of the best chapters I've written so far. I hope it was worth the wait and I really would like to hear what you think. Since it's how the author presents the story to the reader that's important, your reviews do me an invaluable service. So please R&R.  
  
I'm not entirely sure what Hermione's animagus form should be, so I'll let you guys vote. I have setup a temporary e-mail address. If you have any suggestions, please e-mail it them me at ffsuggestions@yahoo.co.uk. Thank you.  
  
Message to people who reviewed:  
  
"Me": Thank you for reminding me about the disclaimer. It's been added.  
  
"Mikala": We'll see about Hermione's animagus form, I'm still debating on that one. As for Hermione's trip to Paris, I don't know if I can really pull that off. I'll probably need to read up on that one so I can figure out what to do. I plan to do two sequels to this story, for Harry, Ron, and Hermione's 6th and 7th years. 


	13. Chapter 12: Hermione's Lesson

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 12: Hermione's Lesson  
  
The next day, Harry woke up surprisingly early. He saw that Ron was still asleep, snoring loudly so he went downstairs to the common room. When he got there, he noticed that Hermione was there already, reading her Transfiguration book.  
  
"Morning Hermione," he said as he approached her.  
  
She jumped at his voice, but calmed down and smiled at him when she realized who it was.  
  
"Good Morning Harry. What are you doing up so early?" she asked.  
  
"Oh, I guess I was just thinking too much to really get much sleep," he replied.  
  
"Thinking about what?"  
  
As much as Harry wanted to tell Hermione what he was thinking about, he couldn't really risk their friendship if she didn't feel the same way and he didn't want to betray Ron's trust. So he made up something that he knew she would believe.  
  
"I was thinking that since it's Saturday and classes don't start until Monday, why don't I teach you some of the elemental magic I've been learning. It should come in handy in the dueling class and if we're ever going up again You-Know-Who, but don't tell anyone about it," Harry lied.  
  
"Really? Thank you Harry," she said with a delighted look on her face. "When do we start?"  
  
"Typical Hermione," Harry said chuckling. "You're always enthusiastic to learn, aren't you."  
  
"If you were as enthusiastic about learning, you'd probably have better marks than you already have," she said pointedly.  
  
"Save it for Ron, but why don't we start now since everyone's still asleep."  
  
"Sure, but what do we tell Ron when he comes down and sees that we aren't here?"  
  
"Just say that you're helping me with some homework. He'll believe you," Harry replied.  
  
"Alright, so where should we go?"  
  
"How about the Shrieking Shack beneath the Whomping Willow? There shouldn't be anyone there and we can practice our magic without any interruptions," Harry suggested.  
  
"Sounds good. Should we go now?"  
  
"Yeah, just let me go back up and get the marauders' map and the spellbook," Harry said and he went back up as quietly as possible so that he wouldn't wake anyone up.  
  
When he got to his room, he went over to his trunk and opened it. Taking out the Marauders' map and the Elemental Book, he then went over to check that everyone was still asleep before walking downstairs again.  
  
He found Hermione waiting for him by the portrait and he went over to join her.  
  
"Is that the book?" she said pointing at the red book that Harry had under his arm.  
  
"Yes it is. I've memorized it completely by now and I can do all of the spells in it," Harry replied.  
  
"Really now? Am I hearing this right? Harry Potter is actually studying and memorizing his books?" she said mockingly.  
  
"And is the great Hermione finally stumped at not knowing about something," Harry replied in an equally mocking tone.  
  
Hermione hit Harry playfully on the arm and they both exited the common room through the portrait, laughing.  
  
Harry first took out his wand, pointed at the map, and said, "I solemnly swear I'm up to no good."  
  
Immediately lines appeared on the blank parchment, outlining the halls and passageways that went throughout the school. He saw that everyone was still in their respective dorms at this time and only a few teachers were awake. Snape was in the dungeons and Filch was busy chasing Peeves away on the third floor while Professor Sepet was in his office, sitting there it seemed, with Walter just outside the door. Very strange he thought, but the path to the Whomping Willow was clear.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
As they made their way to the Whomping Willow, Harry brought up the amulet that Hermione gave to him for his birthday.  
  
"Hermione, remember that amulet you gave me for my birthday?" he asked.  
  
"Yes, what about it?"  
  
"If either of us want to use it, how do we contact each other without everyone in the room overhearing our conversation?"  
  
"I don't know. I guess we could put silencing charms around our beds. That way we could still talk to each other without everyone hearing it," she said thoughtfully. "But we'd only be able to use them at night, with the curtains drawn shut so that no one will see the glow."  
  
"Sounds good. I knew you were always the clever one," Harry said smiling at her. "I can't think of anyone I'd rather have in a tight spot than you."  
  
"Not even Ron?" she said, blushing.  
  
"Ron is a good friend, but he can be such a stupid git sometimes."  
  
Hermione laughed at the last comment, for she knew very well how Ron could act like such an idiot sometimes.  
  
A few moments later, they got to the Whomping Willow and Harry pushed down the knot on the tree. The tree froze up as if it had been turned into marble and they both made their way down into the passageway towards the Shrieking Shack.  
  
When they reached their destination, they saw that nothing had changed since they had last been there in their third year. The furniture was still wrecked, scattered all over the floor and the windows were still boarded up.  
  
"Looks like this place needs some redecorating," Hermione commented.  
  
"I'm sure we could do that," Harry said. "Do you think we'll need more help to redecorate?"  
  
"Why do you ask?" Hermione asked curiously. "There's only you and me in here. How can we get more help without anyone knowing about this place or what we're doing here?"  
  
"Leave that to me. I'll show you what I learned over the summer."  
  
Harry put down the elemental book and the marauder map on the floor and he took out his wand while Hermione watched him in interest. He then held his wand in front of him and said the incantation for summoning the Air Guardian.  
  
A silver beam of light shot out of his wand as it did during the summer and Hermione gasped it formed the familiar humanoid figure with a light blue tint that Harry recognized as the Air Guardian.  
  
*You summoned me again Harry? * he heard the Guardian say in his head.  
  
"Yes I did, do you think you could help with the redecoration of this room?" he asked the Guardian.  
  
*Of course, but I can't do anything if you don't do something about the broken furniture in this room *  
  
"Sorry, we'll fix it up then you can help us move around some of the furniture."  
  
"How - ? What is he saying? It looks like you're talking to yourself," said Hermione because only Harry could hear the Guardian talking to him in his head.  
  
"Oh sorry, I forgot that only I could hear him," he said apologetically and he asked the Guardian if it was possible for Hermione to hear him as well.  
  
*It is possible, but only if you tell me to be able to talk to her, however, only you will be able to command me * the Guardian replied.  
  
"Then please allow her to hear you," Harry requested.  
  
*As you wish * the Guardian said and Hermione gasped again since she could hear him as well now.  
  
"Hermione, let's repair this furniture, then we can rearrange this room. Maybe we can surprise Sirius," he said happily.  
  
For the next half-hour, the Air Guardian hovered in the room in silence as Harry and Hermione continued to use repair charms to fix the broken furniture and the walls in the room that had been shredded.  
  
"I'm finished with this table," Harry said as he used the repair charm on the table to fix the leg that had fallen off.  
  
"Same here," Hermione said as she repaired some of the bowls that had been left in the room, probably for food and water when the Marauders were staying in the shack.  
  
"Alright, could you hand me one of those bowls," Harry said with a sly grin on his face.  
  
"What are you up to?" she asked cautiously since she noticed the sly look and handed him a bowl.  
  
"Just watch," he replied, taking the bowl from her.  
  
First he put the bowl down on the table and pointed his wand at it.  
  
He said, "Calix Water" and his wand started shimmering. Once the glow subsided, he could see that there was now water in the bowl when it had been empty previously.  
  
"Now you really must lend me the book," Hermione said in amazement. "That spell could come in handy if I want to spend extra time reading in the common room or the library and not have to go to the hall for my meals."  
  
Harry grinned, "I'm not finished yet."  
  
He then pointed his wand again at the bowl and mumbled something that was inaudible to Hermione. She saw that the wand was starting to glow a light blue colour and the water level in the bowl was starting to rise.  
  
Eventually the bowl overflowed and the water spilled all over the floor before gathering itself up into the shape of a woman, made entirely of water.  
  
"Another one of your guardians? How many of them are there?"  
  
"There are four. Air, Water, Fire, and Earth," he said before the Water Guardian started talking to him as well.  
  
*Hello Harry, * he heard her say. *Do you need another bath? I'd be happy to give you one. *  
  
Harry blushed in embarrassment before Hermione interrupted again.  
  
"Is she saying something to you?"  
  
"Yes, but I'd rather not discuss it," he said, still blushing.  
  
"Why? How bad can it be?"  
  
"I don't think you want to know."  
  
"Really? Why not? Tell me," she said pleadingly.  
  
"Alright, she wants to know if I want her to give me another bath," Harry said, turning a deeper shade of red.  
  
"A bath?" Hermione said scowling. "You mean you use these Guardians like slaves who don't get paid?"  
  
"You going to try to 'liberate' them from my control like you've been trying to do with the house elves?," Harry said grinning and the Water Guardian interrupted his conversation.  
  
*Is that the best friend who you were talking about? * she said.  
  
"Yes, she is. Her name is Hermione," Harry replied.  
  
*Pretty girl. I think you should really try asking her out, especially since it does look like you're with her all the time. I don't think anyone would notice the difference, other than you'd be holding hands and giving each other an occasional kiss. *  
  
"What? She's - " Harry started to say, but he stopped himself.  
  
"She's what?" Hermione now cut in. "You're talking about me now, aren't you."  
  
"Yes, she wanted to know more about you," he lied.  
  
"Oh, now could you tell her to let me hear what she's saying?"  
  
"Could you please let Hermione hear what you're saying? She's irritated that she can't hear you," Harry said to the Water Guardian.  
  
*Sure, no problem. * the Guardian said and Hermione now calmed down now that she could hear the Guardian.  
  
"How about we start arranging the furniture. Then I'll teach you one spell before we go off to breakfast, ok?" Harry asked Hermione, trying to avoid going back to discussing dating Hermione.  
  
"Okay," she said and for the next hour, Harry, the Air Guardian, and the Water Guardian were placing the repaired furniture in different places around the room while Hermione was telling them where she thought it would look the best.  
  
Once they were done, Harry told the Air Guardian to return, but kept the Water Guardian present. The Air Guardian faded and disappeared then Harry went and sat down in one of the sofas. Hermione picked up the Elemental book off the floor and joined him, sitting next to him.  
  
"So what do you plan to teach me?" Hermione asked, opening the book on the able in front of her.  
  
*How about the spell used to summon me? * the Water Guardian chipped in.  
  
"Uh, I don't think that's such a good idea," Harry said worriedly. As much as he wanted to teach Hermione, he didn't know if casting such a high level spell would drain her energy completely. However, he was also worried about what the Water Guardian would do since she knew a bit about Harry's feelings for Hermione and may say something that could ruin their friendship.  
  
"Why not?" asked Hermione.  
  
"Because it's a level 5 spell, it could drain your energy and place you in the infirmary for several days like I was when I used too many of the Guardian spells on Nobert," Harry replied.  
  
"Oh, well at least I know how you managed to knock Nobert out. Which Guardian did you use?"  
  
"The Earth one, but I had to summon about 10 of them and half were destroyed."  
  
"Well, its better them than you," Hermione said smiling.  
  
*Pretty smile you've got there Hermione, * the Water Guardian said looking at her.  
  
"Thank you," she said as her cheeks blushed red a bit.  
  
Harry glared at the Water Guardian. This would be a problem. It looked like the guardian was trying to set him up with Hermione.  
  
"Uh, Hermione, could you please wait outside for a while? I need to talk to the Guardian for a while."  
  
"Sure, I'll bring the book with me, so that I can pick something for you to teach me," she said, getting up and bringing the Elemental Book with her before walking into the passageway. Once she had gone, Harry turned back to the Guardian.  
  
"What are you trying to do? Ruin my friendship with her?" he asked irritably.  
  
*Sorry, I was only trying to help. *  
  
"As much as I do have feelings for her, I don't need those feelings getting in the way of our friendship."  
  
*Oh, so you admit you love her? *  
  
"I don't know if I love her, but I do care for her more than I'd like to admit to most people," Harry said, looking down at the floor.  
  
*I think you do, just you're denying it. It's possible that she loves you as well, though I can't tell since I've only met her. *  
  
"There's also one other reason why I don't want to try to date her."  
  
*What's that? *  
  
"I have another friend, Ron. He has a crush on her and wants to date her. He can also get very jealous sometimes, so if it weren't for that and ruining our friendship, I would ask her out."  
  
*Ah, now I understand. That's very noble of you Harry, but you really should admit your feelings to her. If she feels the same way, then you're both happy, but if not, you'll still have her as a friend. *  
  
"I don't really want to take that risk because I don't think I could live with her as a friend if my feelings weren't reciprocated."  
  
*Harry, if you don't, you'll never know and as your servant, I don't want to see you unhappy. Its just that I've had masters who had feelings for someone, but they never admitted them so they lived and died as miserable people because the person they loved eventually got tired of waiting and moved on. *  
  
"Th-Thank you for the advice," he said shakily. He knew the Guardian was right, but Ron deserved his chance at Hermione as well. If that meant that he might be miserable for the rest of his life, then it was a sacrifice worth taking if it meant that Hermione would be happy.  
  
"Hermione's probably finished reading the book by now," Harry said, now smiling. "We should let her come back in, but please don't mention anything I've said to her."  
  
*Your wish is my command * the Water Guardian said.  
  
With that, Harry dismissed the Water Guardian, who disappeared back into the bowl, got up and opened the door to the passageway. He saw that Hermione was sitting on the ground reading his book and as he approached, she looked up and smiled at him.  
  
"Hi Harry, done with your chat?"  
  
"Yes, you can come back in now. Have you decided on what spell you wanted to learn?"  
  
"Yes, I think I'll settle with the 'Force Field' spell. It looks simple enough so I won't get it wrong."  
  
"Hermione, since when did you ever get something wrong?" he said, laughing.  
  
They went back into the room and Hermione saw that the Guardian was no longer present.  
  
"What happened to the Water Guardian?" she asked.  
  
"She went back into the bowl," he said, pointing at the bowl full of water.  
  
"Oh, well, we should get started then."  
  
She took out her wand and looked to Harry for instruction.  
  
"The 'Force Field' spell is simple enough. Just hold the wand in front of you, then you say 'Quiesco Murus.' If you did it right, a barrier should form in front of you. It should stop anything from physically harming you."  
  
She then pointed the wand in front of her and said the words for the spell as Harry told her to.  
  
Almost immediately, her wand lit up and she saw the air swirl in front of her. It was a small light green swirl at first, but as she continued to hold the wand in front of her, it grew larger until there was indeed a physical barrier present.  
  
"I did it!" she exclaimed and Harry smiled at her.  
  
"You're not finished yet. I'll try walking through it. If you did it right, I shouldn't be able to," he said and he walked straight into the barrier.  
  
Hermione laughed at him as he hit the barrier and fell to the ground. He smiled back at her and took out his wand to make the barrier disappear. Then he held out his hand to Hermione, who took it, however, when she did so, he pulled her down and started tickling her.  
  
"STOP THAT!" she squealed in between laughs and struggling to break free of Harry's grasp.  
  
Eventually Harry stopped and suggested that they should go to breakfast, so he picked up the book and the map and they made their way back up through the passageway. Once they were out, they made their way towards the Great Hall. However, halfway there, Harry remembered that they should bring the book back to the dorm first before anyone spotted them with it.  
  
To avoid everyone along the way, Harry used the map and the two made their way towards the Gryffindor tower. When they got to the portrait, they said the password, and the portrait of the Fat Lady swung open.  
  
"Here's the book," Harry said, handing it to Hermione. "Take it up to your dorm and put it somewhere where no one will see it."  
  
"Okay," she replied and she took the book from him before making her way upstairs to the dorm room while Harry went up to his dorm to put the Marauders' map back in his trunk, making sure to wipe it clean first.  
  
By the time he got back down, Hermione was already down as well, and the two finally went to the Great Hall to eat breakfast.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they got to the Great Hall, they saw that Ron was already there eating vigorously. They approached and Harry could see that Ron looked a bit furious.  
  
"Where did you two go off to?" Ron asked them, not looking up from his food.  
  
"I asked Hermione to teach me some of the spells that we'd need for the dueling class," Harry lied as they sat down beside Ron with Hermione in the middle.  
  
"Why didn't you wake me up?" Ron asked. It looked like he calmed down a bit once Hermione had sat down.  
  
"Because I thought you didn't want to be woken at 5:00 in the morning," Harry replied, eating a piece of bacon.  
  
"Well, wake me up next time you two decide to go practice some dueling. I can't wait to see what the Count is like," Ron said enthusiastically.  
  
"You actually want to go to class for once Ron? That's a first," Hermione asked sarcastically.  
  
"Well, dueling class sounds a lot more fun than those other classes," Ron replied, totally oblivious to the fact that Hermione was being sarcastic. "Besides, the Count sounds like he'd be a cool professor."  
  
"Speaking of which, where is he?" Harry asked, looking at the teacher's table. All the professors were present, except for the Count. "He's not at the teacher's table, but Walter is."  
  
"I don't know, maybe he has some work to do for Dumbledore." Hermione hinted to Harry so that Ron wouldn't know what they were talking about.  
  
"Probably, but I find it somewhat strange that this is twice that he hasn't been present in the morning," Harry said.  
  
"You're right. Maybe we should ask Walter..," Hermione said and got up.  
  
"Where are you going? You didn't even finish your breakfast," Ron asked her, noticing that she got up from her seat.  
  
"I'm going off to the library. I have some work to do."  
  
"Wait, I'll come with you," Ron said, and he got up and followed her out of the Great Hall, leaving Harry alone, thinking about what the Water Guardian said earlier. However, he didn't get long as Walter came up to him from behind.  
  
"Good Morning Mr. Potter," Walter said, and Harry jumped in his seat.  
  
"Oh, Hello Professor," he replied, recovering from the shock.  
  
"Please, just Walter, I don't think I could ever get used to people calling me Professor," he said smiling.  
  
"Alright, if you call me Harry, and I don't think I'll ever get used to seeing you smile."  
  
Walter chuckled. "Yes, I get that a lot. Many people don't expect a Necromancer like myself to smile at all."  
  
"Did you come here to chat or did you need something?"  
  
"Ah yes, I was supposed to tell you that Lord Sepet would like to see you and the rest of the members this evening."  
  
"Oh, where is he? I didn't see him at the teacher's table," Harry said, now really curious as to where the Count could possibly be.  
  
"He's off on some business. Even though he's a professor, he's a very busy man. He always has to report to the International Ministry every morning to see if we have anymore Death Eaters to hunt down."  
  
"Really? I didn't know that. I thought he'd be working for us now," Harry said, placing an emphasis on 'us.'  
  
"He is, but if he doesn't report to the Ministry as he always does, every morning, they'd be very suspicious."  
  
"Alright, I'll come. Where should I meet him?"  
  
"Outside on the Quidditch Pitch. I believe he wanted to train all the members personally."  
  
"Will Malfoy be joining us?" Harry asked, not really wanting Malfoy to be there since he didn't know what he'd do if Malfoy insulted Hermione again.  
  
"I believe he will be, he'll be released from the infirmary this afternoon. I'll give Lord Sepet your answer and tell him that you'll meet with him. Good day Harry," Walter responded and he walked out of the Great Hall.  
  
A/N: Argh, that took more than 24 hours, but at least you get two chapters to make up for me not posting something the previous 24 hour period. I also apologize for any spelling/grammatical errors that I may not have caught since I'm somewhat tired and I've been proof reading the chapters on my own. 


	14. Chapter 13: Count Vladimir Sepet

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 13: Count Vladimir Sepet  
  
Harry, Ron, and Hermione were eating dinner in the Great Hall later that day when the Count stood up at the teacher's table.  
  
"May I have everyone's attention," he said in a loud voice that echoed throughout the Hall.  
  
Immediately all the chatter in the Hall ceased and all eyes were drawn towards the Count. Apparently, he still was able to command the respect of every student in the hall. Even Malfoy, who usually scorned at any new professor, gave his full attention to the Count as he was not only impressed with the rich manner in which the Count was dressed, but also with the way the Count was able to instill fear in every Slytherin present.  
  
"I would like to see Mr. Potter, Miss Granger, Miss Chang, Mr. Boot, Miss Abbott, Miss Zabini, Mr. Malfoy, and Mr. Finch-Fletchley once dinner is concluded, outside on the Qudditch Pitch," he said and he resumed his seat.  
  
As the students in the Hall returned to eating and carrying on their conversations, Ron turned to Harry and Hermione.  
  
"Why does he want to see you two? It looked like he called two people from every house," Ron inquired.  
  
"I don't know," Hermione said.  
  
"You not knowing something? That's amazing, I never th-," Ron was about to say before Hermione elbowed him in the ribs.  
  
"Ow, what was that for?" he asked, rubbing his side where she elbowed him.  
  
"Telling you to keep your mouth shut. Harry, do you know what this is about?" said Hermione.  
  
"Yes, it's about our dueling class," Harry replied.  
  
"WHAT?" she said a bit loudly and a few heads at the Gryffindor table turned to look in her direction. "There is a dueling class and you didn't tell me?"  
  
"Well, you were in the library all afternoon so I couldn't tell you," Harry said, while he felt his stomach drop. Ron spending all afternoon with Hermione was eating him up, but he didn't show it.  
  
"You could have joined Ron and me," she said baffled at Harry's behaviour. Was there something wrong with him that he wouldn't see his two best friends?  
  
"I know, but I didn't want to disturb you two studying," he replied, not looking at her.  
  
"And I expect you have a good reason for that?" she said, now a bit aggravated that Harry avoided telling her something important because he didn't want to disturb them in the library.  
  
"I was practicing some dueling," Harry replied truthfully. He had indeed been practicing some of the Elemental magic all afternoon to keep his mind from wandering to the nightmares he had almost every night and because it could come in handy if the Count decided to try something on him.  
  
"Oh, sorry," she said with a softened expression. "I thought you were trying to avoid me for some reason."  
  
*You don't know the half of it * Harry thought sadly, but he quickly put on a smile and faced her.  
  
"Well, shall we go now?" Harry asked, getting up.  
  
"Sure - Ron, I'm going with Harry to the dueling lesson. We'll see you in the common room," she said and she also got up to follow Harry out to the Quidditch Pitch.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they got to the Quidditch Pitch, they saw that the Professor Sepet was waiting with Walter. It was very dark, but they could see four swords and four daggers glinting in the moonlight. They were the first ones to arrive.  
  
"Good evening, Mr. Potter - Miss Granger," Professor Sepet said once they reached them.  
  
"Hello Professor - Hello Walter," Harry returned.  
  
"We'll be starting once the other six join us," Walter said, smiling. "Miss Granger, please come forward and choose a dagger. You will need it for the defense aspect of the class. Mr. Potter, you may choose a sword."  
  
Harry went up and saw that there were four swords lying before the Count, each of a different length.  
  
"Which one is which?" he asked the Count.  
  
"The one on the far left, is a short sword. It dates back to the medieval era. It doesn't have much range, but it can be used easily with one hand and is rather light. Good for close quarter combat. This one is called 'The Morning Star,' " the Count explained. "The other one is a Ruby Eye Serpent sword, it's longer than your short sword, bit heavier, but it can still be used as a one-handed weapon. This one is called 'Dragon's Breath.' The one, second to the right, is a light sword, its shorter than the Ruby Eye but longer than the short sword, its somewhat light, but not ideal for close- combat quarters. This one is called 'Silver Moon' due to the bright glow it gives off in the dark."  
  
Harry looked at the sword, and he could see that it was indeed giving off some light in the dark.  
  
"What about the last one?" Harry asked, pointing at the fourth sword.  
  
"Ah, that one should interest you. It's a long sword, just like the Henry V, only this one is slightly shorter. This one is called the Lion's Crest," the Count said.  
  
"Does it do anything?" Harry said, picking up the sword and putting it in the black leather sheath.  
  
"Maybe, but I'm not sure. Each of these swords has some type of magical ability. The 'Silver Moon' is the most obvious, but the one you picked you'll have to find out on your own."  
  
"What about yours and what is Walter using?" Harry inquired, as he buckled the sword belt underneath his robe.  
  
"Mine is a broadsword, it's very heavy, but it can cut through many things due to its power."  
  
"Does it have a name?"  
  
"Yes, it's called 'The Dragon Slayer,' and has been in my family for generations. Though now its used to protect the dragons instead of killing them," the Count said, looking at Harry. "As for Walter, he's carrying a parrying dagger called a kolombotavich stylet. It's used to parry swords and has guards pointed outward so that you can catch your opponent's sword. His is called the 'DeathBringer' since that is exactly what it does."  
  
Harry was horrified, but in the mean time, Hermione was looking through the daggers, trying to pick one that would suit her. She eventually settled on an Elizabethan style dagger, which was small, but it could be concealed easily.  
  
"Harry, what did you get?" Hermione asked as she put her dagger sheath underneath her robes.  
  
"I picked a long sword called the 'Lion's Crest.' What about you?"  
  
"It's an Elizabethan dagger called 'The Phoenix.' I don't know if it does anything though," she said, looking her dagger over.  
  
"Same with mine."  
  
Eventually, the other six members of the Order came and each of the boys picked a sword while the girls picked a dagger. Malfoy ended up with the 'Dragon's Breath,' Terry Boot picked the 'Morning Star,' and Justin Finch- Fletchley picked the 'Silver Moon.' For the girls, Hannah Abbot picked an Italian Stiletto called 'True Light,' Cho picked a tower dagger called 'Sentinel,' and Blaise picked a Dresden dagger called 'Shadow.'  
  
"Now that you have your weapons, I would like you to know that only you will be able to carry these around the school. Each weapon has its own magical ability, however, those you will need to find out on your own. Whatever you do, do not allow your classmates to wield them," said the Count. "That is all, unless anyone has any questions."  
  
Malfoy raised his hand.  
  
"Yes Mr. Malfoy?" said the Count.  
  
"Will we actually be learning the Dark Arts in this class?" he asked.  
  
"No. I have explicit orders from Professor Dumbledore not to teach you any thing that could be considered the Dark Arts. I will only teach you how to defend yourselves in a duel," the Count said and Malfoy's face dropped. He was very disappointed that they weren't going to learn any of the Dark Arts, despite the fact that the Professor probably knew a few spells that could be placed in that category.  
  
"Anything else?"  
  
"Can we see you duel?" Malfoy piped up again. If they weren't going to learn any Dark Arts, then maybe he'd be willing to give a demonstration.  
  
"If you really wish, I could do that, but do you want to go up against me Mr. Malfoy?" he asked, giving Malfoy a glare that caused him to cower in fear. Harry sniggered at the sight. Malfoy cowering in fear was something that he always enjoyed.  
  
"Mr. Potter, perhaps you would like to demonstrate with me since you seem so intent on laughing at Mr. Malfoy's expense. Yes I think you would be an excellent candidate. Come forward," he commanded.  
  
Harry didn't like the idea of dueling the Count since he didn't know what he was capable of, but on the other hand, it would give him the chance to use some of the magic he was practicing earlier this afternoon. However, Hermione stood up in his defense.  
  
"Is that really fair? He doesn't even know any advanced spells while you know enough to end the duel in a couple seconds," she said, giving the Count the best glare she could muster.  
  
"Miss Granger, life doesn't know what fair is. If Mr. Potter were indeed to face Voldemort (everyone flinches, but Harry and Walter), he will need to be prepared. Therefore I am giving him a chance now while he's still in one piece. Now Mr. Potter STEP FORWARD!" he yelled causing everyone to draw back in fear.  
  
Harry walked forward and faced the Count who bowed to him and drew his sword. Likewise, he bowed and drew his wand.  
  
"You will want to use your sword Mr. Potter," the Count said, shifting into a combat stance, holding his sword in front of him with one hand.  
  
"I won't be able to use any magic if I don't have my wand," he replied and kept his wand in front of him.  
  
"As you wish, let us begin. Don't hold back, because I won't," he said and charged at him with frightening speed that was almost inhuman.  
  
Harry saw this and so he attempted to move aside, but the Count was quick despite his heavy sword and as he moved aside, the Count's sword cut him on his arm. Blood splattered on the ground, but Harry couldn't see it since it was too dark. He winced in pain as the other seven members looked on in horror.  
  
"Come, give me your best," the Count urged.  
  
Harry turned and fired a stunning spell at the Count, however, before it even reached him, a red circle with a pentagram appeared below the Count and a shield formed, blocking the spell and sending it back towards Harry, who manage to dodge out of the way in time.  
  
"Is that your best?" the Count taunted and charged again.  
  
Harry moved out of the way again, this time a little faster and the Count just swung into empty air.  
  
"Very good this time. Now show me something else."  
  
The Count was just playing with him it seemed, however, he had to find a way to match his speed. Only the haste spell could help him there, so he pointed the wand at himself and muttered the incantation.  
  
Immediately, he felt lighter and his movement rate increased. Now he could match the Count.  
  
"You sure you don't want to draw your sword?" he asked again.  
  
"Yes, I'm sure," Harry replied and this time he fired ice bolts at him.  
  
Unprepared for such a quick attack, the Count was caught off guard. Only his inhuman speed saved him from taking the full impact of the spell, since he moved aside as the bolts cut him across his cheek and shredded some of the quilted jacked on his right arm, drawing blood.  
  
"Finally you hit me, very good. Now, show me more," he said, laughing a cold laugh that really frightened Harry. He looked over at the other students and he could see that they were really afraid of him. However, he looked straight ahead and saw that the Count had leaned over to the left too much and was falling. Now was his chance.  
  
Harry drew his sword while holding the wand in his left hand. He fired another ice bolt at the Count, but then something unexpected happened. The Count's falling figure started to fade and eventually he disappeared completely, but only to reappear seconds later running towards Harry as the ice bolts flew harmlessly by.  
  
Harry held out his sword to parry the blow coming towards him, but since the Count's swing was more powerful than he could handle, Harry's sword flew out of his hand and landed near Hermione, who was digging into her cheeks with her fingernails nervously. The next thing he knew, the Count had disarmed him and had his sword across his neck, ready to slit his throat if he made one wrong move.  
  
"I believe, Mr. Potter, the match is mine," the Count said and Harry could see him smile for the first time since he arrived at Hogwarts.  
  
The Count withdrew his sword from Harry's neck and sheathed it again.  
  
"Next time Mr. Potter, when I say draw your sword, I suggest you do so," the Count advised.  
  
Harry went to sit back down by Hermione. The duel with the Count had scared him out of his wits and he was visibly shaking. Cho went over to him and sat down on the other side of him as Hermione looked at him with concern.  
  
"I hope that this has taught you all something. Consider it my first lesson. Never lower your guard to ANYONE!" he shouted. To Harry, he was starting to sound like Mad-Eye Moody and his speech of 'CONSTANT VIGILLANCE!'  
  
"You are all dismissed. We will continue this lesson when classes start. Mr. Potter, good match, but you need to react faster and be glad that I spared you," the Count said before turning and walking back to the school with Walter, blood from his cheek trickling down his face.  
  
The other students likewise got up and quickly went back to the school, until only Cho, Harry, and Hermione were sitting on the Quidditch pitch. It appeared that the Count had seriously scared them out of their wits.  
  
"Harry, are you alright?" Cho asked finally. "I don't think he should have been so hard on you."  
  
"He's right though," Harry said sadly. "If I had reacted faster to his attacks, I probably could have won the match."  
  
"What about the magic he was using? He didn't have a wand out, but he was able to deflect and dodge your spells just as easily," Hermione threw in thoughtfully. "I think you tried your best. That's all that matters to me, even if you lost the match."  
  
"I don't know how he does it. Maybe it has something to do with that sword of his," Harry replied. "Thank you both for trying to cheer me up."  
  
"No problem, that's why we're here," Cho said smiling at him.  
  
"Let's go back to the tower, you could use some rest," Hermione suggested and she helped Harry get off the ground. He recovered his wand and his sword, sheathing it before helping Cho up, then the three walked back to the school and towards the Gryffindor tower.  
  
Harry said 'good night' to Cho and she went towards the Ravenclaw dorms while Harry and Hermione continued on to the portrait of the Fat Lady.  
  
They said the password when they got to the portrait and it swung open. They found Ron waiting in the common room for them to return.  
  
"Hey you two, how did the dueling lesson go? You've been gone for two hours and everyone's already gone up," Ron said.  
  
"I don't know what Dumbledore was thinking this time hiring him to teach this class. He could have seriously hurt Harry," Hermione said maddened at the Count's conduct on the Quidditch pitch.  
  
"Harry, you're bleeding from the arm," Ron said, pointing at the wound. "Maybe you should go see Madam Pomfrey.  
  
"I'll be fine," Harry said and he drew out his wand and muttered something as he passed it over the wound.  
  
Ron was surprised as the wounds closed up as if they weren't even there, though the robe was still torn and blood stained.  
  
"Wow, where did you learn how to do that?" Ron asked in amazement.  
  
"It's one of the spells Hermione was teaching me this morning," Harry lied.  
  
"Really? Hey, you should teach that to me sometime," Ron said to Hermione.  
  
"Maybe I would if you would pay attention to what I was saying every now and then," Hermione said in her usual bossy tone.  
  
"I do pay attention to what you're saying," Ron said.  
  
"Enough you two, I'm going to bed," Harry said, and he made his way towards the stairs. He wasn't in any mood to listen to the two arguing again.  
  
"Harry, are you alright?" Hermione asked him with a look of concern of her face.  
  
"Yes, I'm fine, now please let me go up," Harry said.  
  
"Alright, but if you need anything, please tell me. I'll probably still be here for two hours reading up on a few books," Hermione said, placing an emphasis on books.  
  
"Thanks Hermione - Good Night. Have fun reading," Harry called back.  
  
"Hey Harry, I'll come with you," Ron said. "I don't wish to be stuck here with her reading. I'd be bored to death."  
  
Hermione glared at him and she went up to get her books while Harry and Ron went up to their dorms.  
  
"Did you duel or something?" Ron asked on the way up.  
  
"Yes, I dueled against Professor Sepet. I lost though," Harry said solemnly.  
  
"Hey, at least you came out in one piece, I doubt I would have lasted two seconds against him," Ron replied.  
  
"Thank Ron, I could use the encouragement every now and then," Harry said and he opened the door to their dorm and they both walked in.  
  
A/N: Well, I think I'll cut it off there. Hope you enjoyed it. I will be going on vacation for about two days, so the next post won't be for another 48-72 hours. However, when I get back, I hope to be able to post 2-4 chapters to make up for the time loss. 


	15. Chapter 14: Walter

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling (I'm starting to get tired of typing this, but I must, just in case) and the Frozen orb spell belongs to Blizzard entertainment.  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 14: Walter  
  
When classes finally started on Monday, Harry was still shaken from the duel against the Count but nevertheless, he was still looking forward to his Defense Against the Dark Arts class with Walter. Even if the Count was going to turn into another Snape, maybe Walter would be a lot nicer to him. He still carried around his sword under his robes, just as Hermione had her dagger hidden under her robes at all times. The sword supposedly had some type of magical power, but Harry didn't have a clue as to what it did.  
  
At the moment, Harry was eating breakfast with Ron and Hermione in the Great Hall and lost in his thoughts about what the day would be like when Ron's voice interrupted his thinking.  
  
"Hey Harry," Ron said. "What class do we have first?"  
  
"Let me check," Harry replied and took out his schedule so that he could look at it.  
  
"Oh great," Harry said, looking at the schedule. "Our first day and Snape gets a chance to take points away from Gryffindor. We have double potions with the Slytherins followed by lunch, then transfiguration and finally Defense Against the Dark Arts, with the Slytherins again."  
  
"Today must not be our day. The Slytherins must be overjoyed to see us," Ron commented sarcastically. "What do you think Hermione?"  
  
Hermione, who was looking at the teacher's table at the moment, wasn't paying attention to what Ron said, so when he called her name, she was absolutely clueless as to what he was talking about.  
  
"Huh?" she said, turning her attention back to Ron. "You were saying something Ron? Sorry, I wasn't paying attention."  
  
"Hermione not paying attention? What's wrong with you lately? You and Harry haven't been yourselves," Ron said.  
  
"Sorry, I was looking over at the teachers table - Harry where's Professor Sepet? This is the third time he's been missing. Did Walter say anything to you about that yesterday?" she asked.  
  
"Yes, did," Harry said. "He told me that Professor Sepet always reports to the International Ministry every morning."  
  
"Really? I thought he was working for Dumbledore now," Ron added.  
  
"He is, but he's also working as an auror for the International Ministry," Harry replied.  
  
"Well, I really don't see why Dumbledore hired him. He certainly doesn't seem to follow the rules very often," Hermione said.  
  
"I'm sure Dumbledore has his reasons. Remember what he said to Snape when we were trying to sign up for additional classes?" Harry pointed out.  
  
"Yes, I know he knows what he's doing but I think this is one time where he may have miscalculated. - Well, I'm off to class. If nothing else I'm not going to give Snape a chance to take points off for being late," Hermione said and she got up, heading out of the Great Hall.  
  
Harry and Ron got up as well and followed her out of the Hall down to the dungeons where they were supposed to have their classes.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they got down to the dungeons, they found that they were the first one to arrive, so they went in and found their seats, near the back of the room where Snape couldn't really bother them. Hermione got out her potions book while Harry and Ron sat and talked about Quidditch. This year they would be playing Quidditch again since there wasn't a tournament like the Triwizard Tournament to take up all their time and Ron wanted to try out for the team since they would be needing someone to replace their keeper and one of the chaser positions since Oliver Wood and Angelina Johnson had graduated when they were in their third year.  
  
A few minutes later, they heard the door open and Malfoy walked in, alone, which was rather unusual. Normally he had his two goons, Crabbe and Goyle, with him wherever he went. In fact, Harry didn't seem to remember seeing Malfoy's two goons since the incident on the train where Cho had cast the 'Confusion' curse on him. However, Harry noticed that Malfoy was carrying his sword that he got on the second day of school, around his waist in plain sight.  
  
"Well, if it isn't Potter, Weasel, and Mudblood," Malfoy said arrogantly, walking up to their table.  
  
"What do you want Malfoy?" Ron asked, glaring at him, and was going to get up to attack him, but he was held back by Harry and Hermione.  
  
"Oh, just wanted to see if Potter ever got his mudblood girlfriend back from you, or if you managed to steal her away from him," Malfoy said with a sneer.  
  
"Malfoy, I suggest you sit down before something bad happens to you," Harry said, now getting up, while Hermione looked at him worriedly.  
  
"Oh, I don't think so Potter, not when I have this," Malfoy said, drawing his sword.  
  
"Where did you get that?" Ron asked.  
  
"Professor Sepet gave it to me. Unlike the other professors, he sure knows how to treat us purebloods with respect," Malfoy continued, still holding his sword, drawn in front of him. "Pity you don't have one Weasel. Must be because of the company you keep."  
  
By now, Ron really wanted to punch the living daylights out of Malfoy, but since he had drawn his sword, Ron could only sit back and glare at him to the best of his abilities.  
  
"Malfoy, do you even know how to use that?" Harry said, his hand now moving to his own sword, hidden under his robes.  
  
"Probably a lot better than you do Potter," came the reply. Malfoy was really pushing them to their limits by continuing to insult them. However, Harry could now hear the other students coming down the hall. Soon they would be here and Malfoy would be outnumbered. "Unlike you, I was given lessons on how to handle a sword. You didn't even last two seconds against Professor Sepet in that duel."  
  
Now it was Hermione's turn to stand up to Malfoy. "I don't remember you wanting to fight him Malfoy. I don't think you would have lasted as long as Harry did. If I remember correctly, you were cowering in fear at the sight of him."  
  
By now, the footsteps in the hall reached the door and when the door opened, Harry was disappointed to see that the students that entered weren't Gryffindors but more Slytherins.  
  
"Oh look Potter, more of my friends," Malfoy said, smirking. "With my sword and them around, you won't be able to do anything at all."  
  
Now Malfoy was pushing all of Harry's buttons. It was taking all of his self-control not to draw out his wand and curse him. He decided he couldn't use his sword since everyone would know about it if he drew it and he didn't need that.  
  
Unfortunately, Ron was sitting in his seat fumbling with his wand while Malfoy had his sword pointed at him, and Hermione was eyeing all of the Slytherins in the room, who were looking at them and making faces. She had her hand in her pocket, probably wondering if she should draw her wand or not. If it came to firing curses at each other, Harry was severely outnumbered, with only Hermione to back him up.  
  
Harry heard more footsteps in coming down the hall now, and this time he knew that they had to be Gryffindors. When they arrived, Harry wouldn't be outnumbered anymore, but they sure were taking their time he thought.  
  
"Malfoy, take your sword away from Ron," Harry finally said.  
  
"Or what? You'll draw your sword?" Malfoy said, quickly looking in his direction. "If you faced me in a duel, you wouldn't last two seconds, not with the way you handled your sword that night. The Count knocked it out of your hand the moment you drew it."  
  
The Slytherins in the room laughed, and now Harry lost it. He drew out his wand and fired a blinding spell at Malfoy. The beam hit Malfoy in the eyes and he staggered back, dropping his sword and his hands going to his eyes.  
  
"AHH I CAN'T SEE," he screamed. "HELP ME SOMEONE!"  
  
The Slytherins stopped laughing as Malfoy stumbled backward onto the floor and they all drew their wands pointing them at the three Gryffindors in the room.  
  
Hermione had drawn her wand as well, and prepared to defend herself, but Harry knew that even if he could put up a shield to defend himself, he didn't know if it would cover Ron and Hermione as well. Fortunately for him, the Gryffindors entered the room at that exact time, to see the Slytherins pointing their wands at them.  
  
In response, the Gryffindors drew out their wands as well, though Neville looked nervous, and pointed them back at the Slytherins.  
  
*This won't be good if we start throwing curses at each other, * Harry thought. *Snape will be sure to try to expel all of us. *  
  
The Gryffindor students formed a circle on the inside of the dungeon while the Slytherins stood along the walls, a few blocking the door before all the Gryffindors could enter. The situation was starting to get out of hand, when the door blew open, throwing the Slytherins who had been holding it shut, to the floor.  
  
In the doorway stood Walter looking very enraged at the sight that was before him and Harry could feel that the aura that Walter gave out was indeed very powerful, but not anywhere near the one that Dumbledore had when he came to rescue Harry last year from Barty Crouch.  
  
"WHAT IS GOING ON IN HERE?" he yelled.  
  
Malfoy, hearing the voice and thinking that it was Snape, spoke up, trying to sound as hurt as possible. "Professor, Potter blinded me with a blinding curse."  
  
"Mr. Potter, is that true?" Walter said, turning to face Harry while the Gryffindors backed away in a group and the Slytherins pressed up against the wall. Clearly, Walter wasn't someone to mess around with, even though he smiled on occasion.  
  
"I - It is Professor, but he was pointing his sword at Ron and taunting us, so I had to do something to defend him," Harry said, though Ron scowled at him, looking upset at having to be defended by his friends.  
  
With that, Walter walked up to Malfoy and passed his hand over his eyes, muttering something.  
  
Immediately, Malfoy's sight returned to him and he now saw that it was Walter looking down at him, still upset at the fact that they had almost come to firing curses at each other.  
  
"Mr. Malfoy, explain yourself," Walter said and he stood up.  
  
"Uh, I came in here and those three decided to curse me, so I drew my sword to defend myself," he said, pointing at Harry, Ron and Hermione.  
  
"I don't think so Mr. Malfoy," Walter said, looking down at him. "You're lying. Your eyes give you away."  
  
"I hereby take 10 points away from Slytherin for lying to a professor, another 40 points and a detention for threatening another student, and you will hand your sword over to me," Walter continued as Malfoy's eyes bulged in surprise at what he was hearing. "I will retain your weapon until further notice, but you may keep your wand. You no longer deserve to carry such a weapon if you aren't going to use it responsibly and I will be sure to make your detention fit the crime."  
  
"B-But you can't do that. Professor Sepet gave that sword to me. You can't take it away. My father will see that I get it back," Malfoy stated in surprise. Harry was enjoying the sight of Malfoy on the floor trying to hide behind his father.  
  
"My lord gave it to you. It is a privilege to carry it, abuse that privilege and you forfeit your right to carry it," Walter countered. "As for your father, I would like to see him try to get it back for you. He may be influential, but that influence doesn't extend to my circle."  
  
Walter walked over and picked up Malfoy's sword from the ground. "Just be glad Mr. Malfoy that you are in this school. If you had done this at my lord's castle, I would have killed you and resurrected you as one of my undead servants."  
  
Malfoy now looked at Walter with horror since he really was a coward and didn't like the idea of becoming anyone's undead servant.  
  
"However, I am not unfair, therefore Mr. Potter, I will take away 15 points from Gryffindor for attacking another student," Walter said seriously, looking in Harry's direction.  
  
Harry thought that Walter was rather nice. Rather than give him detention like Snape would, Walter only took away points, which could easily be recovered.  
  
At that moment Snape walked into the room and looked around. He noticed Walter and glared at him, but Walter only smiled at him and explained to him what happened before walking out of the room.  
  
Snape was enraged at what he had heard. Malfoy threatening a student and getting blinded, while his own house was trying to start a fight with the Gryffindors. Nevertheless, his own bias kicked in and he turned a blind eye at it.  
  
"GET BACK TO YOUR SEATS!" Snape yelled and everyone quickly scurried back to their seats.  
  
"Potter, this is all your fault. I'm going to take away 25 points from Gryffindor for attacking another student and you'll be serving detention with Walter later on. He gave two detentions earlier and I hear he'll have something interesting for you to do," Snape continued, smiling evilly at Harry while Malfoy turned around in his seat and smirked at him.  
  
Harry just kept his mouth shut. As much as he'd like to do more damage to Malfoy, he couldn't risk Snape taking away anymore points from Gryffindor.  
  
However, the rest of the class didn't go so well as Snape paired Harry with Neville, who was very clumsy and it took all of Harry's quick reflexes to stop all of the potion ingredients from falling to the ground and breaking. Unfortunately, Neville melted his cauldron as usual and Snape had them clean up their mess.  
  
"Longbottom! Another 10 points from Gryffindor. Don't leave this room until you clean up that mess," Snape growled as Neville nervously attempted to clean up the spill.  
  
Harry sighed and helped Neville clean up. Fortunately for him, the class was now over and it was time to go to lunch, so once the spill was clean up, he and Neville headed over to the Great Hall for lunch.  
  
"Thanks for helping me back there Harry," Neville asked, his round face still pale from having had to deal with Snape.  
  
"No problem, I think Snape just enjoys making our lives miserable, so don't think about it" Harry replied and he walked ahead so that he could find Ron and Hermione.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When Harry got to the Hall, he found Ron and Hermione sitting at the Gryffindor table already eating. They had saved him a seat so he sat down next to Hermione and started to pile some food onto his plate.  
  
"Harry, some mail came for you," said Hermione, handing him a letter that the owls apparently delivered while he was still down in the dungeons cleaning up the spilled potion.  
  
"Thanks," he said, taking the letter from her and opening it.  
  
He saw that there was only a blank parchment with two things on it. A phoenix and 8:00 this evening. He looked at Hermione who nodded and he quickly put away the letter. Unfortunately, Ron caught this and looked at them suspiciously.  
  
"Hey, are you two up to something?" Ron asked disgruntled a bit that his two friends might be doing something behind his back.  
  
"No, why would you think that?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Oh, because Harry just looked at you and you nodded. Must have something to do with that letter he got. You aren't dating each other behind my back are you?" he asked accusingly.  
  
"Ron, why would we do that?" Hermione asked, now looking back at Ron. This wasn't going well and Harry was really worried that this business with the Phoenix might end up ruining his friendship with Ron.  
  
"Because you've both been acting very strange lately and don't think I haven't noticed," said Ron, his cheeks turning pink in anger. "You two have also been gone until late at night twice already."  
  
"Ron - Harry and I aren't dating behind your back. It's just that Professor Sepet wanted to teach us dueling and since he's always gone in the morning and afternoon, he can only tell us when he wants to meet by either owling us or having Professor Laikov tell us," Hermione lied, hoping that Ron would believe her. She rather hated lying to Ron, but she did give her word to Dumbledore that she wouldn't reveal the existence of the Phoenix Order and she would keep that promise.  
  
Ron's face expression softened a bit, but he was still suspicious. "Oh, alright."  
  
"We better get to class, we have transfiguration next," Harry said, hoping that there wouldn't be another argument between his two friends. Hemione was able to cover up what they'd been doing for Dumbledore, but he didn't really know if they could really keep it quiet for the entire year.  
  
With that, Harry got up and walked out of the Great Hall with Ron and Hermione following.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they got to transfiguration, they found Professor McGonagall waiting for them.  
  
"Alright, everyone take a seat and open your books to page 4," she said. "This year, we'll be learning how to transfigure each other into different objects. Since the Dark Lord's return, this will come in handy should you need to conceal yourselves from his agents."  
  
Oddly enough, Harry thought Professor McGonagall was looking at Hermione and him while she was talking. Maybe it was her way of helping them prepare for their excursions against Voldemort.  
  
"Miss Granger, did you have a question?" McGonagall said, noticing Hermione's hand go up.  
  
"I was wondering if we were going to learn how to become animagi at all this year," she said, looking enthusiastic at the thought of being able to change into an animal like Harry.  
  
"Unfortunately, I won't be teaching you that until this year," came the reply.  
  
Hermione was visibly disappointed, but Harry leaned over and whispered to her much to the dismay of Ron.  
  
"Don't worry, I'm sure Sirius will teach you," Harry whispered, smiling at her.  
  
"Thanks Harry," she whispered back.  
  
During the class, they broke into pairs, Ron with Hermione, leaving a disappointed Harry to be paired up with Seamus. They were supposed to transfigure each other into chairs for this particular period.  
  
Harry let Seamus go first and he could feel his legs turn into wood and he fell backwards since he couldn't balance too well on wooden legs, which caused Seamus to burst out laughing. Harry grinned and pointed his wand at Seamus and transfigured his legs and hands into wood so that he too fell to the ground, only when he tried to stop his fall, his wooden hands slipped on the stone floor and Seamus fell flat on his face instead.  
  
Now it was Harry's turn to laugh and he looked over at Ron and Hermione to see how they were doing. He saw that Hermione had transformed Ron completely into a chair and Hermione was smiling as Professor McGonagall came over to award her some points.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Once class was over, Harry, Ron and Hermione made their way over to their next class, Defense Against the Dark Arts, which they were having with the Slytherins again. Along the way, they exchanged stories on what they did during transfiguration.  
  
"Harry, that was very mean of you to do that to Seamus," Hermione said, making an attempt to scold him, but she burst out laughing instead and Harry grinned at her.  
  
"Well, you did manage to transform Ron into a chair," said Harry. "It was amazing that he was so quiet."  
  
Ron's ears turned pink and he whacked Harry on the arm.  
  
"Hey, what was that for?" Harry said, laughing.  
  
"Just paying you back for making a joke at my expense," Ron replied, grinning. "But it was funny watching you fall over on those wooden legs of yours."  
  
They got to their class on time and were surprised to find the Gryffindors and Slytherins sitting quietly. Apparently the incident earlier with Malfoy had scared them out of their wits and Harry could see that Malfoy was also behaving himself, though probably still fuming at having his sword taken away.  
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione took their seats at the front of the class, since they saw that the first row was completely empty, due to the fact that all the students in the room wanted as much distance between them and Walter.  
  
Eventually Walter walked in and Harry noted that he didn't have much of a problem like Snape or Professor McGonagall in keeping the class under control.  
  
"Good afternoon everyone," Walter said as he strode to the front of the room, only this time he was wearing black robes over his plate armour. "I hope that everything goes well this class so that you can all learn something useful."  
  
"Today we'll be learning about undead creatures that you may encounter in the graveyard, though with Voldemort's (everyone in the classroom flinches, but Harry) return, it is entirely possible that you may encounter them when you least expect it. Therefore I think it is best that you learn about them."  
  
"The first creature we'll learn about is a ghoul, also known as zombies. They are rather resilient to physical attacks and since they are dead and don't feel any pain, they will be stronger than your average human," Walter explained. "Does anyone know how they are created?"  
  
Hermione raised her hand and Walter called on her. "Miss Granger?"  
  
"They are created when a live human is killed by a vampire. Then they are brought back as one of their servants," Hermione said. "They can also be created when a body hasn't decomposed entirely and are brought back to life by either a vampire or a necromancer."  
  
"Thank you Miss Granger, 10 points to Gryffindor," said Walter. "Though I am a necromancer, I can't bring dead people back to life as a ghoul. The next time we meet, some of you will be able to try to fight against a ghoul. Don't worry though, I will not allow you to be killed by them."  
  
"Since the ghouls are stronger than your average human, they can tear you limb from limb," he continued to the horror of some of the students. "And if you allow them to get too close and their bite can turn you into one of them as well. So be very careful not to let them near you. Fortunately, they are very slow and chances are they won't even get close to you because you'll be able to kill them before they come close. Does anyone know how to kill them?"  
  
It was Harry's turn to raise his hand. "Mr. Potter?"  
  
"They can be killed by fire since they are made of flesh, most of which is rotten already and so they are very flammable," Harry said.  
  
"Very good, another 10 points to Gryffindor," Walter said. "There are other ways to kill them with physical weapons, but swords and daggers aren't suggested. Javelins, throwing knives, arrows, or any piercing weapon that can be thrown can be used against them, provided you hit them in either the heart or in the head. A sword only works if you cut their head off cleanly."  
  
They took notes for the remainder of the class on how to kill some of the stronger undead creatures, such as skeletons and wraiths. Though Harry was enjoying the class, he was starting to wonder about what Dumbledore wanted this evening.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
At dinner, the entire Gryffindor table was talking about Quidditch. Alicia Spinnet had announced that there would be tryouts for the keeper and chaser positions on the team, though Ron seemed more interested in who the new captain of the team would be.  
  
"Hey Harry, why don't you go for the captain position," Ron said, looking over at him.  
  
"I don't know Ron, I think Alicia would make a better captain than I ever would," he replied.  
  
"Harry, I think you would make a great captain," Hermione said, beaming at him. "You have the ability and skill to become one, so why don't you try it?"  
  
"We'll see, but right now, we need to go meet Professor Sepet," Harry said as he finished the last of his dinner and got up.  
  
"See you later Ron," Hermione called and she got up to follow him.  
  
They walked over to Dumbledore's office talking along the way about what they could possibly be doing this time and making sure no one was following them.  
  
By the time they got up to Dumbledore's office, they saw that almost everyone was there already and Sirus greeted them enthusiastically, while Snape looked disgruntled as usual. Only the other students were missing though eventually they came and Dumbledore began the meeting.  
  
"Today, we'll be discussing our first mission, but I believe Professor Snape has a report to deliver first," Dumbledore said. "Please give your report Serverus.  
  
Snape stood up and strode to the middle of the room to give his report.  
  
"During one of my recent trips to see the Dark Lord, one of his servants delivered a report saying that they had established a staging area in the wizarding town of Kilndar, which happens to be very close to Hogsmeade," Snape said. "I believe that they are planning to move against Hogsmeade and are just going to use the town so that they may gather in one place but it is also entirely possible that they want to take over the town, but I do not have any solid evidence yet. As of now, they have control over one of the houses."  
  
"Thank you Serverus," Dumbledore said as Snape sat down again. "In order to find out what they are up to, we will be conducting a little raid on the house in one month. Right now, Alastor, we will need about 10 aurors from the ministry. See if you can gather them up and make sure that they are ready to go in one month's time."  
  
"I shouldn't have a problem with that," Moody said in a scratchy voice.  
  
"Good, now it is only a matter of picking another 9 members, other than Alastor, who will go. I will start with volunteers," Dumbledore said.  
  
"Walter and I will volunteer to go," said Professor Sepet from his seat.  
  
"I'll volunteer as well," Remus piped in  
  
"If he goes, I go, so that I can keep an eye on him," Sirus added with a grin.  
  
"I'll come along," Percy said airily. "I don't think there should be any problem with that, right dad?"  
  
"Alright Perce, but if you go, I come along too," Arthur said.  
  
"That makes six, three more," Dumbledore said. "Oh and Minerva, since the raid will be done on a Hogsmeade weekend, we will need you to stay back and watch the students so that they don't suspect that we are gone. Anyone else wish to volunteer?"  
  
The room was quiet for a moment and Harry looked around. No one really wished to volunteer since there was a chance he or she could get killed, yet who wasn't afraid of death? He wasn't, but only because he had encountered it so many times that sooner or later, he wouldn't be surprised if he did get killed.  
  
"I'll volunteer," Harry finally said and everyone looked in his direction.  
  
"Very well Harry, you may go."  
  
If Harry thought that Dumbledore was going to say anything else, he was surprised because Dumbledore kept quiet and looked around the room for another volunteer.  
  
"If Harry goes, he'll need someone to watch his back," Hermione said seriously. "So I'll go."  
  
Harry turned to Hermione in surprise and looked at her, but she gave him a look that said that she meant it and although Harry was worried about what could happen to her, he was glad that he would have a caring friend coming along.  
  
"Thanks Hermione, I'm glad I have you coming along," he whispered.  
  
"That's what friends are for," she whispered back. "Besides, I can't let you have all the fun."  
  
"Alright, anyone else? One more person," Dumbledore said.  
  
"I'll be your last person Professor," Harry heard someone say, but he was surprised to see that it came from Malfoy.  
  
"Very well Mr. Malfoy," Dumbledore said. "Perhaps its time you prove to us that you do not wish to follow in your father's footsteps."  
  
Harry's suspicion of Malfoy increased with his statement. He knew that Malfoy was a coward and wouldn't put his life in danger unless it meant that he would gain a lot out of it. Yet something about the way the statement was made told Harry that Malfoy meant what he said. Nevertheless, he was one to watch for, just in case.  
  
"Alright. The nine of you must be prepared to go in a month's time. I suggest that you three," Dumbledore said, looking at Harry, Hermione, and Malfoy, "brush up on your counter curses since there is a very good chance you may get injured or killed. That will be all, you are dismissed."  
  
With that, everyone got up and started filing out of the room. Harry got up too, and called Sirus aside for a moment to ask him if he could teach Hermione to become an animagus. Sirus walked over while Hermione waited for him in the doorway.  
  
"Hey Sirius," Harry whispered to him. "Do you think you could teach Hermione how to be an animagus like us?"  
  
"Sure, I'll talk to her about it," Sirus said grinning. "You can come along too since I'd like to see how much progress you've made."  
  
"Thanks," Harry said and he gave Sirus a hug before he walked out. Or at least tried to.  
  
"Mr. Potter," he heard a voice call from behind. "Professor Snape tells me that you are to serve detention with me this evening."  
  
He turned around to see that it was Walter calling him and he groaned to himself. He had forgotten about the detention and he didn't like what Snape said earlier when he thought it would be rather interesting.  
  
"Mr. Malfoy and Miss Chang," Walter continued. "You two also are serving detention with me this evening."  
  
Malfoy and Cho turned around and walked back to Walter, groaning as well, since they both wanted to get back to their dorms to get some sleep.  
  
"Hermione, this shouldn't take long. You can go ahead to the Gryffindor tower," Harry said to Hermione, who was still waiting in the doorway.  
  
"Alright, I'll wait for you," Hermione said and she walked out of the office with Sirus.  
  
Soon Harry, Cho, Malfoy, Walter, and Dumbledore were the only ones left in the office.  
  
"Now, let's go get our fourth person and you can all serve your detentions," Walter said. "Please follow me."  
  
With that, he walked out of the room with Harry, Cho and Malfoy following.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
As they walked down the corridors, Harry talked with Cho, while Malfoy walked behind keeping his mouth shut. Maybe his experience with Walter really did change him, Harry thought.  
  
"Hey Cho," Harry said as he walked beside her. "What are you serving detention for?"  
  
"Oh, some Slytherin named Montague or something like that, said something horrible about you and Cedric," Cho said. "So I cursed him and that's why I'm here. What about you?"  
  
"Snape gave me detention for cursing Malfoy," Harry said, pointing to Malfoy behind him. "Walter was the one who interfered first though and he only took away points from us, but he gave Malfoy a fright and a detention. Only Snape didn't think that it was enough."  
  
Soon enough, the three of them found themselves outside and they found Montague, who was a rather large person with dark brown hair and a large nose on his pale face, waiting with Filch.  
  
"Thank you for taking him out here," Walter said to Filch who gave him a nasty look and walked back inside the school.  
  
Walter then turned back to them. "We will now head over to the graveyard. We will be capturing some ghouls for tomorrow's Dark Arts lesson. Normally they don't last too long in the sunlight, but they should live if we bring them to the dungeons."  
  
They walked off in the direction of the graveyard, which was located on the other side of the forbidden forest, and along the way, Harry could see that it didn't look much different from the previous time he was here with Hermione, Neville and Malfoy.  
  
He looked back at Malfoy and he was glad to see that he was shaking in fear, but he had his wand drawn, in case. Walter was ahead of them, with his dagger drawn as if he was expecting to get attacked, which was entirely possible since there were deadly creatures that roamed the forest at night.  
  
Turning to Cho, he could see that she had her wand drawn, but she wasn't so frightened as Malfoy. As for Montague, he too had his wand drawn, but he kept it by his side, instead of in front of him, ready to curse if necessary, as Malfoy did.  
  
Since Walter was expecting to get attacked, Harry thought that it was best if he was able to provide some support and he too drew his wand, holding it in front of him.  
  
Finally, they reached the opposite end of the forest and Harry could see a graveyard in front of him. Walter walked ahead and held out his free hand, mumbling something. As he did, Harry saw that a spear made entirely of bone took shape in his hand. Once the spear had taken shape, Walter continued to say something, though it was inaudible and the spear started to glow a bright green, just like the one that Harry saw kill the vampire in the graveyard during the summer.  
  
"Alright, does everyone have their wand drawn?" Walter asked.  
  
They all nodded and entered the graveyard. It was very quiet and all Harry could hear was the wind blowing calmly, however, as they went in further, he thought he could hear some moans along with the wind.  
  
"Here they come," he heard Walter say behind him, and he turned around to see that there were about fifteen ghouls advancing slowly towards them. Walter threw his spear at one of them, hitting it in the heart.  
  
The ghoul moaned loudly before turning to dust, the spear disappearing along with it and looking back at Walter, Harry saw another spear, similar to the one that he had just thrown take shape in his hand.  
  
"You four," Walter said, throwing the second spear at another ghoul, again piercing it through the heart, turning it to dust. "Kill another 5 ghouls and we can capture the rest."  
  
With that, Harry lost no time in firing a fireball at the nearest ghoul. The fireball hit the ghoul in the chest, and it burst into flames, moaning loudly as it turned to dust, the flames going out with it.  
  
He saw another fireball fly near him to his right and he looked over to see who it came from. It came from Cho who smiled at him when she saw that he was looking at her and Harry thought that he saw her blush as well, but he dismissed it as his mind playing tricks on him in the dark. He then looked behind him to Malfoy and Montague. Both of them were too scared out of their wits to do anything and they just stood there frozen with their wands by their side.  
  
By now there were about 10 ghouls left. 2 more and they could capture the rest and go back to the castle. Cho fired a second fireball at a ghoul, setting it on fire and turning it to dust while Walter threw another glowing spear at a ghoul, piercing it in the heart once again. The ghoul crumbled to the ground before turning to dust and the spear disappeared.  
  
After watching Walter kill the ghouls with such accuracy, Harry could see why the Count had made him his bodyguard. To his knowledge, Walter didn't miss a single ghoul each time he threw a spear and each of them had hit the ghoul in the heart.  
  
"Finally, we can capture them. Use freezing charms only," Walter commanded and he walked over to some of the graves, probably to raise some skeletons.  
  
"Cho, do you know how to use a freezing charm?" Harry asked looking over at her.  
  
"Yes I do. Professor Flitwick taught it to us in class today," she replied and fired a freezing charm at one of the ghouls. The charm hit the ghoul and it froze in place.  
  
"One down and seven more to go," she said, quite delighted that her charm had worked.  
  
Now it was Harry's turn. He fired an ice bolt at the nearest ghoul, hitting it and freezing it like Cho's freezing charm had done. There was a faster method, but he thought that Malfoy and Montague would spread it around the school if they found out.  
  
"Cho, I'm going to try using a spell that will freeze all of the ghouls if it works," Harry said.  
  
"Ok, go for it," Cho said.  
  
"I need you to do a memory charm on Malfoy and Montague after I cast it, but get them on the ground first, otherwise they'll get hit," he said to her and she cast a body-bind spell on the two Slytherins behind them.  
  
"Alright, they're taken care of, now cast it," she said and she got down on the ground in a prone position.  
  
Harry then raised his wand in above him and said "Orbis Glacialis" to cast the frozen orb spell. A ball of ice took shape above him and it started rotating quickly, sending out a shard of ice at each of the ghouls as it rotated.  
  
The ice shards hit the remaining six ghouls and they were all frozen solid. Once that was done, Harry waved his wand again and the ball above him disappeared.  
  
Harry walked over to Cho and helped her up before going over to Malfoy and Montague to remove the body bind spell that Cho cast earlier.  
  
"Alright Cho, use the memory charm on them," Harry said and Cho walked over to the two Slytherins who were starting to get up off the ground and cast a memory charm on each of them, wiping away their memories of what they had just seen.  
  
"Thanks Cho," Harry said, and he quickly pointed his wand at Cho before saying "Obliviate," to wipe her memory of what she had just seen. He didn't really like to pull something a Slytherin wouldn't hesitate to do, but he had to make sure that not even she knew about his Elemental magic.  
  
"Huh?" Cho said, now dazed after the memory charm hit her. "Harry, what am I doing here?"  
  
"You're here serving detention with Malfoy and Montague, remember?" Harry said.  
  
"Yes, I remember that, but why are all these ghouls frozen?"  
  
"Oh, I froze them so that Walter could capture them."  
  
Walter returned with a group of sixteen skeletons and Malfoy, Cho, and Montague looked at them with horror, but were too frightened to do anything.  
  
"Please don't be frightened," Walter said. "These will only help us transport them back to the castle."  
  
With that, Walter went up to the ghouls and he put both hands in front of him, palms facing up before raising his hands into the air. The ground rumbled a bit and Harry saw a cage made entirely of bones spring up from the ground and form around each of the ghouls.  
  
After each of the frozen ghouls was in their respective cages, Walter motioned to the skeletons who turned the cages on their sides, careful not to shatter the frozen ghouls within them, and carried them, two skeletons per cage, back to the castle.  
  
Now that was done, Harry, Cho, Malfoy, and Montague headed back to the castle with Walter leading.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they got back to the castle, it was already 1:00 AM and they were all yawning. Detention on the first day of classes wasn't exactly what Harry had in mind, but he was looking forward to seeing Hermione back at the Gryffindor tower, though he assumed that she would probably be up in her dorm, sleeping by now.  
  
"Thank you for your help," Walter said as he led the skeletons down to the dungeons. "Good night."  
  
"Good night Professor," Harry called and he started walking towards the Gryffindor tower when Cho caught up with him.  
  
"Harry, that was fun working with you. I hope we can keep working like that," she said.  
  
"I hope so too. Well, we should be going off to bed. Good Night Cho," Harry said and he continued walking in the direction of the Gryffindor tower.  
  
"Good night Harry," Cho called back before she walked in the opposite direction to the Ravenclaw tower.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When he got to the portrait of the fat lady, he said the password and the portrait opened, though the fat lady was very disgruntled at having been woken at such a late hour.  
  
He entered and when he got to the common room, he saw Hermione, sleeping on one of the chairs next to the fire with one of her transfiguration books on her lap. He smiled to himself. Hermione had actually kept her promise and had waited for him in the common room. He was glad to have a friend like her.  
  
Since he didn't want to wake her, he quietly walked up to the boys' dorms and grabbed some blankets from his bed before going back down. He took away her book and placed some of the blankets on her before standing up and gazing at her.  
  
She looks beautiful in this light, Harry thought to himself and he leant down and kissed Hermione on her forehead. Hermione's lips formed a smile in her sleep and Harry couldn't help but smile as well before sitting in the armchair across from her with the rest of the blankets and falling into a blissful slumber.  
  
  
  
A/N: Well, I'm back from vacation. This chapter is rather lengthy but hope you like it. Sorry I can't post the 2nd chapter up yet where they'll be off on their first mission because its not finished. I hope to do that tomorrow. 


	16. Chapter 15: Order 01: Raid

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling  
  
A/N: Well, this chapter is the training/raid, but I don't know if you guys wanted to do the Quidditch tryouts. There will be quidditch chapters later, but I thought the tryouts were insignificant compared to the raid, so I kinda skipped it, so unless I get about 25 reviews or e-mails saying that you want the quidditch tryouts/training prior to the raid as a separate chapter, then this chapter will stay. I'm rather annoyed that I took too long to get this done, but hope you enjoy it.  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 15: Order 01: Raid  
  
As the day of the raid came closer, classes went on as usual though the duelling class and the Dark Arts class quickly became very popular among the students at Hogwarts and even though the students were quite afraid of Professor Sepet, the majority had come to like Walter.  
  
The ghouls that Harry and Cho captured with Walter the first week of school were used as target practice for the students and Walter somehow managed to capture enough ghouls so that each student could try fighting against one. Harry and Hermione did well since they fought them before in Romania, but those like Dean or Neville, who had never gone up against a ghoul, much less anything of the undead nature, tended to freeze up in fright and Walter had to come and save them.  
  
Transfiguration was also fun for Harry since they got to transform each other into smaller objects like quills or needles that would make it harder for any Death Eater to find them. Hermione, as usual was able to transform the other person perfectly, but those like Neville ended up transforming their partner into a large needle with hands and feet.  
  
For the most part, Harry was enjoying himself in between training for his first mission with Hermione and doing homework for his classes but if there was one thing he missed, it was Quidditch. The training and his classes took up so much time that he hardly had time to go flying on his firebolt. In fact, when the Quidditch tryouts came, he was in his duelling class with Hermione and he had missed it completely. However, they were both pleased to see that Ron was made a reserve beater with Ginny and that Seamus was the new keeper while Dean became the new chaser, replacing Angelina Johnson. Finally, the new captain of the Gryffindor team turned out to be Alicia Spinnet, which Harry was happy to see since he knew that she could do a good job and he could continue with his training.  
  
The morning before the raid was to take place, Harry was in his bed early in the morning, wide awake and thinking of how he could best protect everyone in case something went wrong when his amulet that Hermione gave him for his birthday started to glow.  
  
Fortunately his curtains were drawn so no one could see the emerald glow emitting from it but Harry still had to quickly grab his wand and cast a silencing spell around his bed so that no one could hear Hermione when she started talking.  
  
"Hi Harry," he heard her say. "I couldn't sleep, so I was wondering if you were awake and could talk to you."  
  
"I'm awake Hermione. What is it that you wanted to talk about?"  
  
"Well - I have two things I want to talk to you about," Hermione said hesitantly. "But one I want to do in person."  
  
"Okay Hermione, I'll let you do that later. We won't be going down to breakfast for a few more hours," he said.  
  
"The first thing is, what should we tell Ron tomorrow when we don't go to Hogsmeade?" she asked.  
  
"Hmm, that's a tough one. We could say that we want to get some extra studying in, but Ron will really get suspicious. He's already suspicious enough since we've been coming back late at night several times already because Professor Dumbledore wanted us to update him on our preparation," Harry said.  
  
"I was thinking of having Professor McGonagall tell him that we're doing something for Dumbledore tomorrow so we can't go to Hogsmeade," Hermione suggested.  
  
"That sounds great," Harry said. "Ron will be sure to believe her, but what happens if he decides to stay behind also?"  
  
"Then let him, he won't see us anyway," Hermione replied. "But he'll question us or Dumbledore what we've been up to. How should we take care of that?"  
  
"I don't know," Harry said thoughtfully. "This phoenix business is starting to become too much to keep quiet all the time."  
  
"I know.."  
  
Harry went through some ideas that Ron could possibly believe, but they could all end up with more people hurt since Ron might get revenge on some people if they went wrong. Then it hit him. Malfoy.  
  
"Why don't we go talk to Walter about this," Harry said.  
  
"What did you have in mind?"  
  
"Well, we could attack Malfoy again and have Walter give us detention with Dumbledore, to be served when all the students are in Hogsmeade."  
  
"Then when Professor McGonagall tells Ron we're doing something for Dumbledore and asks him, Dumbledore can say we're serving detention. That's great!" she exclaimed.  
  
"Yeah, but what happens if Ron decides to attack Malfoy?" Harry asked.  
  
"Well, if he does, he'll be in the infirmary and we'll need a replacement. Which would be good since we'll get someone better than him coming with us and we don't need to worry about him telling his father about our mission," Hermione said.  
  
"What about Professor Sepet?"  
  
"What about him?"  
  
"Well, you have been very suspicious of him and you have been spending too much time in the library looking up spells you could use for his class."  
  
"Oh, that was for my S.P.E.W. campaign," Hermione explained. "But I think I should do some more research."  
  
"You're always researching something," Harry said dully. "And will you give up the S.P.E.W. stuff? The elves are happy working as they are."  
  
"Honestly Harry, why don't you help me. The house elves are slaves and they deserve to be paid. After all everything is taken care of by them. Why don't you and Ron join me in the library sometime? Maybe you won't find it so dull," Hermione said irritably.  
  
Harry laughed. "No thanks. I think that we'll let you do the reading. - Speaking of which, how is your training coming?"  
  
"You mean with the Elemental magic?"  
  
"Yes silly, what else did you think I meant?"  
  
"Oh, well I've been practicing at night after everyone's gone to sleep and I can do all of the level 3 spells without a problem but level 4 is draining me," Hermione said.  
  
"What about your animagus training?"  
  
"Sirius did tell me he was going to teach me, but he hasn't gotten around to it. He's always either in hiding or doing some patrolling in Kilndare for Dumbledore."  
  
"Does that take care of everything? I think everyone will be waking up soon."  
  
"Yes, I'll tell you the second thing later in person. See you down at breakfast," Hermione said and his amulet stopped glowing. He put it away again under his pyjamas and got up to shower.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
After Harry had showered and changed, he went down to the common room to find Hermione sitting on the couch reading a Defense Against the Dark Arts called 'Creatures of the Graveyard.'  
  
"Hello Hermione," Harry said.  
  
"Hi Harry," she replied and smiled at him. Harry thought her smile was the most wonderful thing in the world and it helped strengthen his resolve to protect her in their upcoming mission.  
  
"Ron should be coming down soon along with everyone else and we can go to breakfast."  
  
"Alright. Some people went down already, but we'll wait for Ron."  
  
It was some time before Ron came down but once he did, the trio made their way down to the Great Hall for breakfast.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they got to the Hall, Harry noted that the Count was once again not present at the teacher's table. Probably still going to the Ministry like he always does, every morning but at least he wouldn't be around to bother Harry like he did in the duelling class.  
  
The Phoenix members still had the duelling class on their own in the evening and as much as Harry enjoyed it, he thought that Professor Sepet was trying to pick on him since he kept saying that Harry was too slow or doing something wrong, and would attack him at random times just to see if he could react fast enough. However, by now, Harry found that he was indeed improving his reflexes and was able to dodge more of the Count's random attacks; though trying to counter attack was another matter since he still wasn't able to find a spell capable of penetrating the Count's magical shield. If nothing else, Harry was happy that could be with Hermione for this class and he thought it was worth having to put up with the Count's antics, especially if it meant that he could protect her better when they actually went on their mission.  
  
They took their usual seats with the fifth years and Harry and Ron were talking about Quidditch like always when they saw a bunch of owls fly through the room to deliver some mail. Harry and Hermione got a letter each and they could guess what it was about before they even opened it. Ron also got a piece of mail as well. He immediately opened it and read it while Harry opened his letter. Again there was the phoenix symbol, but this time with '7:00 this evening' written.  
  
He pocketed the letter and saw Hermione doing the same, before turning to Ron.  
  
"So Ron, what was your letter about?" Harry asked.  
  
"Oh, it was from mum. She just wanted to make sure I was carrying out my prefect's duties well," Ron replied not noticing that his two friends had also received a letter.  
  
"Well, have you?" Harry said.  
  
"A lot better than Hermione has, but you wouldn't know that since you two have been gone until late at night at times," Ron said grudgingly.  
  
"Sorry Ron, but we've been busy with work for Dumbledore," Hermione said with an apologetic look on her face.  
  
"You're always busy with something," Ron stated, now becoming seriously annoyed.  
  
"I think we should go to class. We have Defense Against the Dark Arts first, then History of Magic, which will be boring as usual, but at least we get the rest of the day off," Harry cut in, not wanting his two friends to get into another argument. "Come on."  
  
So they got up and went to their Dark Arts class down in one of the other dungeons.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they got there, Harry saw that Walter was sitting at his desk and the other students hadn't arrived yet, so he told Ron and Hermione to go find a seat while he went to talk to Walter.  
  
"Um, Professor?" Harry said as he approached him.  
  
"Ah, Good Morning Mr. Potter," Walter said and gave him a quick smile. "Could I help you with something?"  
  
"Uh, yes, could I talk to you outside for a while?"  
  
"Of course, please step outside."  
  
They stepped outside of the classroom and Walter turned to look at him. "Now what did you need?"  
  
"Well, it's about the raid tomorrow.."  
  
"I see, nervous are you?" Walter questioned.  
  
"Its not that I'm nervous.. It's about my friend," Harry said.  
  
"Ah, you mean Miss Granger - you're worried that she'll get hurt when she's coming along," Walter said knowingly.  
  
*How did he know that? Only Dumbledore has been able to read my thoughts, * he thought.  
  
"I'm not reading your thoughts Mr. Potter, I'm just observing your body language," Walter said. "If you're not nervous about tomorrow then you must be worried."  
  
"Where did you learn how to do that?" Harry asked in surprise.  
  
"If you've interrogated people as often as I have, you start learning a few tricks," Walter explained. "But I can only go so far without having to torture them."  
  
Harry gave him a horrified look. "You're right that I'm worried about Hermione getting hurt, but my friend Ron is starting to suspect something with all this Order business."  
  
"I see, so you need my help to figure something that he'll believe when you two don't show up in Hogsmeade tomorrow."  
  
"Yes, I was thinking of having you give us detention with Dumbledore tomorrow so that we'd have to stay back," Harry said.  
  
"I'm sure that can be arranged. Just make sure that Mr. Malfoy meets with some type of accident," Walter said hintingly.  
  
Harry grinned at him. He was glad that Walter understood him. "Thanks Walter, I appreciate it."  
  
"You're welcome Mr. Potter, and tomorrow, I'll make sure that nothing happens to your friend," Walter said. "I'm not my lord's most trusted bodyguard for nothing."  
  
"One more question," Harry interrupted as Walter was starting to walk back into the classroom.  
  
"Yes?" Walter said, turning around again.  
  
"Why are you so cheerful? You're supposed to be a Necromancer who enjoys inflicting pain on others," Harry asked.  
  
"As a person who acts as a bodyguard for such a high ranking noble as Lord Sepet, I am required to attend social events such as balls that are held at his castle. For me to be effective, people can't see me as a threat. I don't always dress in this armour you know," Walter explained, grinning at Harry. "So I must dress according to the occasion and be able to socialize well with others. I must say, some of the ladies were quite good looking and it is a pity that I'm not younger. I was quite the ladies man back then."  
  
Harry was taken aback by Walter's explanation. He had never expected such an answer from a man who dealt death out to others so often, but his idle thoughts were pushed aside as the other students arrived and he walked back into the classroom to sit with Ron and Hermione.  
  
When Malfoy arrived, Harry could see that he still didn't have his sword, but Harry was hoping that Malfoy would act like he normally did and come bother him so he'd have his excuse to attack him.  
  
"Now that you've all taken your seats, we'll be learning how to defend yourselves against skeletons. Unlike the ghouls, they aren't made of flesh; they are just bones so fire won't work too well. Does anyone know what their weakness is?"  
  
Hermione raised her hand as always. "Miss Granger?"  
  
"Since they are made of bones, freezing charms work perfectly, then you can use something hard like a stick to smash them to pieces," Hermione said.  
  
"Very good. Yes, that works, but you could also just use any large object to destroy them without having to freeze them. After all, they are rather frail. 10 points to Gryffindor," Walter said. "Alright, today, we'll let some of you try your hand at combating a skeleton. Any volunteers?  
  
Harry raised his hand. "Mr. Potter, so you wish to be the first one. Very well, step forward."  
  
Harry went up to the front of the classroom with his wand in his hand. Walter then walked over to a pile of bones in a corner and muttered something.  
  
Immediately a skeleton came to life and walked towards him. He pointed his wand at it and fired an ice bolt at it. The ice bolt hit it right in the chest and froze the skeleton in place.  
  
"Very good, now draw your sword and destroy it," Walter commanded.  
  
Harry didn't like to draw his sword since it was hidden and no one knew about it except the other phoenix members, but in this case, he didn't have much of a choice so he drew his sword and brought it down on the frozen skeleton, shattering it into a million pieces on the stone floor.  
  
"Excellent. Another 10 points to Gryffindor," Walter said while the rest of the class looked on torn between amazement and horror.  
  
Harry sheathed his sword again under his robes and went to sit back down.  
  
"Amazing Harry, where did you get that sword?" Ron whispered excitedly.  
  
"Professor Sepet gave it to me in duelling class," he replied.  
  
"How come we didn't get one?"  
  
"Because he only had 4 of them and he selected the ones that he wanted to give them to," Harry said truthfully.  
  
"So why'd Malfoy get one? He's supposed to be a death eater in training," Ron asked.  
  
*Oh great, now how do I get out of this one, * Harry thought.  
  
"Because he didn't know Malfoy was one. Besides, he took it away," Hermione chimed in and Harry gave her a look of relief.  
  
"I asked Harry, not you. Why are you covering for him anyway?" Ron whispered a little louder.  
  
"I'm not covering for him. I'm in the same duelling class as Harry, so I would know," Hermione stated matter-of-factly.  
  
"Oh, I forgot about that," Ron said, though the look on his face was more like one of annoyance.  
  
The rest of the class progressed smoothly but Malfoy didn't bother them to the disappointment of Harry. He wanted an excuse for Malfoy to meet with the unfortunate accident he had planned. However, the opportunity came sooner than he expected.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
After their Dark Arts class, Harry, Ron and Hermione were on their way to the Great Hall for lunch when Malfoy and his two goons, came up behind them.  
  
"Well that was a nice demonstration you put on for us in there," Malfoy said sarcastically while Crabbe and Goyle smirked. "I'm surprised you didn't answer the question about the skeletons. Instead you let your mudblood girlfriend do it for you."  
  
"Malfoy you really don't want to mess with me today," Harry said, trying to act as irritated as possible, when in reality he was delighted since this was his chance to attack Malfoy. Though he had to hold back Ron from beating him to a pulp.  
  
"Oh, I think I do," Malfoy said. "Why don't we settle this right now. You and I so that we can see who really is the better duellist."  
  
"I accept," Harry replied, smiling evilly, though Hermione made an attempt to stop him.  
  
"Harry, you know that you're going to get into trouble if you duel him right now," she said.  
  
"Hermione, I've been wanting to show this bouncing ferret how to duel, now leave me alone," Harry said.  
  
"I've had enough of watching you flirt with your girlfriend Potter," Malfoy said disdainfully. "Its time I teach you who's the better man."  
  
With that, Malfoy drew his wand and fired a curse at Harry, but after having Professor Sepet attack him randomly many times over the past few weeks, Harry was prepared and dodged it easily. He sent a paralyzing spell back at Malfoy, which hit him and he crumpled to the ground.  
  
"Aw, what's wrong Malfoy, fallen and can't get up?" Harry taunted him while Ron and Hermione looked on, Ron amused while Hermione was scowling in disapproval.  
  
Crabbe and Goyle then advanced on Harry trying to attack him, but Hermione saw it coming and she took the opportunity to stun them with a full body bind spell.  
  
"Mr. Potter! Miss Granger!" said a voice from behind them.  
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione turned around to see Walter coming towards them.  
  
"I'm afraid I'll have to give you two detentions for attacking another student. You'll be serving it with Dumbledore tomorrow and you won't be allowed to go to Hogsmeade," Walter said. "Now get moving and don't bother with Malfoy, I'll take care of him."  
  
They knew better than to question him, but Harry was happy that the plan worked perfectly. Now they would have an excuse to go on their mission without Ron suspecting anything.  
  
"Great job you two," Ron said delightfully his face dropped in disappointment. "But now I'll have to go to Hogsmeade tomorrow alone."  
  
"Don't worry Ron, the detention won't last long and you'll get to see us when you come back. If you want, you could go with Fred and George to the Zonko's and buy some stuff," Hermione said.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The rest of the day until it was time for the meeting with Dumbledore was boring. History of Magic was dull as usual with Professor Binns droning on and on about how some goblin was trying to start another revolt. Didn't the goblins ever learn when to stop trying to revolt after they've failed so many times? It's a wonder they're even in charge of the bank if they're that dull witted.  
  
Dinner was a bit more enjoyable since he was able to talk with Ron about Quidditch and it was an opportunity to relax before the meeting, but when the time came, Harry and Hermione told Ron that they would be going to see Dumbledore about their detention tomorrow. They got up and went off to Dumbledore's office leaving an enraged Ron behind.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they got to Dumbledore's office, they met Cho outside who greeted them enthusiastically.  
  
"Hi Harry, Hi Hermione," she said smiling at them. "We'll be starting soon so we should be going up."  
  
With that, she said the password (Chocolate Frogs) and the gargoyle hopped aside so that they could enter. They let the stairs carry them up to Dumbledore's office where they found all the teachers waiting for them, along with Moody.  
  
"Hello Harry - Miss Granger - Miss Chang," Dumbledore said with his eyes twinkling behind his spectacles. "Please take a seat."  
  
They sat down and looked to Dumbledore who began to speak.  
  
"Tomorrow morning we will be starting your first mission: the raid on the death eater house in Kilndar. Thanks to Sirius, we know exactly where it is located and we have planned out the proper method to conduct the raid, but I think Alastor can elaborate more. - If you please Alastor," Dumbledore said motioning to the middle of the room while he sat down.  
  
Alastor Moody got up and walked toward the center of the room, his wooden leg making a clunking sound on the floor of the office. Once he got there, he conjured a map with his wand so that everyone could see the town's layout.  
  
There was a road that went through the town, which branched out into different paths along the way. Each path was lined with houses and Harry saw that the Death Eater house, which was marked in red on the map, was located in the top left corner of the town, far away from the gates.  
  
"I have gathered the ten aurors from the Ministry. They are aware of the objective, which is to find any information regarding the Death Eater activities around this area. Tomorrow, they will be stationed in the two houses adjacent to the house we plan to raid," Moody said, pointing to the two houses next to the red mark with his wand.  
  
"The house itself has 3 floors and so we will have to search each floor separately. There is also a possibility that there will be Death Eaters in the house so be prepared for trouble. Normally we would apparate into the house but since there is a shield around the house that prevents anyone from apparating into it, we will have to use floo powder to get into the houses next to it though Mr. Potter, Miss Granger, and Miss Chang would be using floo powder to get to their destination since they can't apparate."  
  
Harry was surprised that Cho would be coming along, but when he looked around, he noticed that Malfoy wasn't present. Maybe he had hurt Malfoy a lot more than he had thought at first, but he figured it had something to do with Walter, however he turned his attention back to Moody and the map.  
  
"The Sirius, Remus, Arthur, Percy, and I will use floo powder to get to the house on the left, while Mr. Potter, Professor Laikov, Miss Chang, Miss Granger, and Professor Sepet use the same method to get to the house on the right. Each of you will have 5 aurors coming with you to each house. They will be waiting when you arrive," Moody continued in his scratchy voice.  
  
"Everyone in the left house is team one and everyone in the right house will be team two. Team one will enter through the front while team two will enter from the back. Once we are inside, five of my aurors will cover the first floor while everyone else searches the other two floors. We will also have two lookouts, one at each door and after we get the information we need, we will quickly exit the house and get back here using floo powder. Any questions?"  
  
Professor Sepet was the first to speak. "What plan do you have of escape if it turns out to be an ambush?"  
  
"According to our spies, they aren't expecting an attack on the house, but I will be carrying a portkey, just in case," Moody said.  
  
"Very well," Professor Sepet said, giving Walter a quick look, who only nodded. "Also, why is Mr. Malfoy not coming along with us and why Miss Chang as his replacement?"  
  
"Mr. Malfoy has met up with an unfortunate accident and has been confined to the infirmary my lord," Walter answered before anyone else could. "As for Miss Chang, she volunteered to be his replacement this afternoon."  
  
Though everyone in the room looked at Cho in surprise, Professor Dumbledore showed no sign at being affected by her decision.  
  
Harry turned to Cho, who was sitting next to him and whispered, "Why did you volunteer?"  
  
"Because no one else would and after all you've done last year, I think this is the best way to pay you back, even if it means getting killed," she replied.  
  
Harry was surprised at her willingness to sacrifice herself for him, but when he looked into her dark brown eyes, he saw that she was sincere and was touched by it.  
  
Cho caught Harry looking at her and also looked back into his emerald eyes, but unlike Harry, she quickly turned away blushing though Harry took no notice and went back to the briefing.  
  
Dumbledore stood up once Moody sat down and walked to the center of the room again.  
  
"Thank you for the information Alastor," Dumbledore said. "I ask that everyone meet here again tomorrow at 7:00 in the morning. The other students will be in Hogsmeade, and Minerva, please keep an eye on them," said Dumbledore. "You are all dismissed."  
  
With that, everyone got up and filed out of the office. Harry and Hermione started walking towards the Gryffindor tower when Cho caught up with them.  
  
"Harry, could I talk to you for a moment?" she asked.  
  
"Uh, sure," Harry replied, giving Hermione an uncertain look. "I'll catch up with you Hermione."  
  
Hermione walked ahead, and once she was out of sight, Harry turned back to Cho.  
  
"So what did you want to talk about?" he asked.  
  
"Well, it's about tomorrow. I don't know how it will turn out, but I just wanted you to know that I'm glad I got the chance to know you and be your friend," Cho said, giving him a weak smile.  
  
"I'm glad I got to know you too," Harry replied. "I hope that everything turns out well and no one will die."  
  
"Well, I should be going now. We need to get up pretty early tomorrow so. good night Harry," Cho said and she gave him a quick hug.  
  
Harry accepted it and when she pulled away, Harry noticed that she was blushing before she quickly walked towards the Ravenclaw tower.  
  
*Did I see what I thought I saw? * Harry thought to himself as he walked towards the Gryffindor tower. *Well, I should be going to sleep as well. Its best that I'm alert tomorrow so that I can make sure that nothing happens to Hermione *  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When Harry got to the portrait of the fat lady, he said the password (Griffin). The portrait swung open and he walked in to see Hermione sitting on the armchair reading her duelling book while Ron was playing a game of Wizard's Chess with Seamus.  
  
"Hi Hermione - Hi Ron," Harry said as he walked in.  
  
"Hi Harry," Hermione said dryly.  
  
"Hey Harry," Ron said, not looking up. "Rook to A2 - HAH EAT THAT! CHECKMATE!"  
  
Seamus groaned and got up to go upstairs to the boys' dorm while Ron was busy cleaning up the pieces.  
  
"So how'd your chat with Cho go?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Oh, you've been talking with Cho?" questioned Ron.  
  
"Yes I was. It went alright I guess," Harry said. "She just wanted to tell me something."  
  
"Tell you what?" said Ron.  
  
"It's about the detention tomorrow," said Harry. "She'll be joining us tomorrow because she cursed another Slytherin for insulting Cedric. - Well, I'm off to bed. Our detention tomorrow is very early in the morning. Sorry we can't join you in Hogsmeade Ron."  
  
"Alright, good night mate," Ron said. "Hermione, care for a game of Wizard's Chess?"  
  
"No thanks Ron, go play with Dean or something. I'm off to bed. Like Harry, I need the rest," Hermione replied and she walked upstairs.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The next morning, Harry awoke before everyone else and quickly got dressed in his robes before going down to the common room to find Hermione. He found her waiting by the portrait and she was also dressed in her school robes.  
  
They both walked towards Dumbledore's office and along the way, they saw Cho, Walter and Professor Sepet, however, the Count was dressed in a full black cloak with the hood up whereas Walter was wearing his black plate armour like always.  
  
"Harry," Hermione whispered. "Professor Sepet looks a lot like the death eater in the mirror back at the castle in Romania, especially since he's carrying his sword under his cloak."  
  
"You're right. I think we should keep our eyes peeled for trouble," Harry whispered back. Harry thought it was rather strange for them to see the Count up and about in the morning, and wearing a cloak no less. Hermione was right and he did resemble the Death Eater in the mirror. He would have to be extra careful and be prepared to fight against him, despite his power.  
  
Eventually they got to Dumbledore's office and found that everyone was already waiting.  
  
Sirius and Remus gave Harry and Hermione a hug, which they both returned happily.  
  
"Is everyone ready to go?" said Alastor Moody.  
  
Sounds of acknowledgement echoed through the room and Moody drew out a bag of floo powder, which he gave to Harry.  
  
"Here you go Mr. Potter. Just say 'Kilndar' before you step into the fire and you should appear in the house," he said to him. "The same goes for you Miss Granger and Miss Chang. Good luck and we'll see you there."  
  
With that everyone, took a pinch of the floo powder and stepped into the fireplace until Harry, Hermione, and Cho were the only ones left in the room.  
  
"Harry, Miss Granger and Miss Chang," Dumbledore said from behind them as they stepped towards the fireplace.  
  
They turned around and looked at him. "I wish you three the best of luck and please keep your eyes open for trouble. Since Voldemort's (Hermione and Cho flinch) return, he has been gathering more followers from all over the world. It is possible that you may encounter some of them on your trip so use caution. Good luck."  
  
"Thank you professor," Harry said and he turned to the two girls. "I'll go in first in case something is wrong, then you two can follow."  
  
"Be careful Harry," Hermione said and she gave him a hug while Cho looked on, scowling.  
  
"Good luck Harry," said Cho.  
  
"Thanks you two," Harry said and he stepped up to the fireplace. "See you two over there."  
  
With that he threw the floo powder in the fireplace but he turned around and gave Hermione and Cho an encouraging grin before yelling 'Kilndar' and walking in.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Harry appeared in a room moments later, which he assumed to be the house. The fireplace was marble with a moving portrait of two wizards fishing in a lake and there was a window on either side of the fireplace through which sunlight was coming into the room. The rest of the room had forest green walls and there was a desk off to right and two red armchairs on the left wall next to a bookcase filled completely with large books. In between the armchairs, there was a lamp table with an oil lamp on it. It looked more or less like a study room.  
  
Harry saw that Walter was already in the room and he quickly got up to join him. Soon enough, Hermione and Cho popped through the fireplace and he was glad that they had made it safely.  
  
"Hello you three," Walter said. "This is it, let's go. The five aurors are already waiting outside with Lord Sepet. Have your wands out and follow me."  
  
With that, Harry, Hermione and Cho drew their wands, ready to curse and they followed Walter, who had drawn his dagger, out the door.  
  
When they had gone through the door, Harry saw that there were two wizards waiting with their wands drawn in the hall that they had entered. There was a door on the far right of the hall which was the exit and everyone made their way towards it.  
  
"Keep your eyes open for trouble," Harry heard one of the wizards say from behind in a cautious voice. "Professor Sepet is already outside looking around."  
  
They quickly exited the house and fanned out, looking around for trouble. Harry saw that the house was surrounded by a hedge, about one meter high(approx. 3.2 feet), and that Professor Sepet was already running towards the right, his sword drawn. Once he reached the hedge, Professor Sepet quickly used his sword to cut through the hedge with inhuman speed and soon enough, there was a path wide enough for everyone to walk through.  
  
They all ran towards the opening with the Count leading and entered the grounds of the house that they were supposed to raid.  
  
Once everyone was on the other side, the Count walked quickly towards the back door of the house, which had three levels like Moody had said, and motioned for everyone to follow.  
  
Everyone joined them and the Count put a finger to his mouth, which Harry couldn't see since his face was covered with the hood, telling them to be quiet.  
  
"I can sense that there are a total of ten Death Eaters in the house," the Count said. "Four on the first level, two will be in the hall, once we enter."  
  
"You there," the Count said to a wizard in a red robe standing next to Walter. "Blow the door open and Walter and I will take care of the two Death Eaters in the hall. Everyone will then enter the house and you will stand guard out here, keeping a watchful eye for any trouble."  
  
"Yes sir," the wizard replied.  
  
"Alright, ready?" the Count asked, to which they all nodded in acknowledgement. "On my count. Three - two - one - go!"  
  
The wizard then blew the door open and the Count entered with Walter, who had a bone spear forming in his hand, which was glowing green. The two Death Eaters standing in the hall were taken by surprise and before either could draw their wands, Walter had thrown his spear at one of them, impaling him through the heart while the Count rushed at the other with his sword, cutting the Death Eater through his robe in a diagonal slash starting at the left shoulder and coming down to the right hip.  
  
Blood gushed out of the cut, spraying against the wall across from where he was standing and some getting on the Count's cloak while the one with the spear going through him was thrown back from the force of the spear hitting him and Harry could see that a spot of blood was forming on the Death Eater's robe, quickly spreading down his cloak.  
  
Walter's spear disappeared and both Death Eaters fell to the floor, dead, with pools of blood forming on the floor below them. Neither had the chance to even utter a cry since it had all happened so fast.  
  
Hermione and Cho each let out a gasp at what they had just seen and when Harry looked at them, he saw that they both were a bit pale.  
  
"What do you think you're doing Professor?" asked a wizard in a purple robe, spitting out each word. "You were supposed to stun them, not kill them."  
  
"I do what is necessary," the Count replied. "If it means that there's one less Death Eater walking around, then so be it."  
  
"Very well. I will have to report this to Professor Dumbledore," the wizard replied disdainfully before the door on the other side of the hallway opened.  
  
Walter quickly had another spear forming in his hand while the Count held his sword in front of him, prepared for trouble. Fortunately, the door opened to reveal Moody, who had his wand drawn before him.  
  
"It's only me," Moody said before looking over at the two slain Death Eaters on the floor. "Nice job with the Death Eaters professors. We have secured the first floor."  
  
"You two," Moody continued, motioning to two aurors in blue robes. "Stand guard here. Make sure that no one else comes in. The rest of you, follow me."  
  
They followed Moody out of the hallway, Hermione and Cho looking away from the two Death Eaters lying on the ground as they passed, into a foyer which had a stone staircase off to the right as they entered the room. Harry saw that Percy, Arthur, Sirius, Remus and two more aurors were already in the foyer. Sirius gave Harry a small smile, which he returned happily before Moody started talking again.  
  
"Now for the second floor and there's also a room on this floor that needs to be searched. its right over there," Moody said, pointing to a door to the left of the foyer. "Professor Sepet, could you please search that room while everyone moves on to the second floor."  
  
The Count made his way over to the room and entered it while Moody led the way up the stairs, walking cautiously, his wooden leg echoing on the stone floor, which wasn't good since it could alert any Death Eaters waiting around the entrance to the second floor. Fortunately though, there weren't any Death Eaters around and the group made it up safely.  
  
Walter quickly ran over to the nearest door as Percy and Arthur did the same with a door farther down, their backs pressed against the wall and their wands to their side. Walter motioned to Harry and he quickly went over to him.  
  
"I'm going to blow this door open. There's a Death Eater on the right once you enter the room. Take care of him," Walter said and he made ready to kick the door in. "Ready?"  
  
Harry nodded and he made ready to enter.  
  
Walter then kicked the door open and Harry ran in. The Death Eater was standing looking at a bookcase when he entered and Harry quickly fired a paralyzing spell at him. It hit him and the Death Eater fell to the floor with a thud.  
  
"Good job," said Walter. "I'm going to take care of him now."  
  
"You're not going to -," Harry started to say in horror, but Walter had already gone up to the Death Eater and plunged his dagger into his heart.  
  
"There - one less Death Eater to worry about," Walter said, withdrawing his blood stained dagger from the lifeless body and blood started to spread on the floor. "Let's go."  
  
Harry was starting to have second thoughts about Walter as he followed him out of the room. Both Walter and the Count didn't hesitate to kill anyone. They would be dangerous enemies if they ever turned against the Order and to Harry, the safety of those he cared about came first.  
  
"The other room is taken care of," Harry heard Percy say as he exited the room with Walter.  
  
"Good job and I took care of the last Death Eater in the room at the end of this hall," Moody said. "Percy, stay here with the remaining aurors I brought with me and search the rooms. Everyone else, follow me up to the third floor."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Moody once again took the lead as he led them up to the third floor and when they arrived, Arthur and Sirius went over to one of the doors while Remus, Hermione, and Cho took another door.  
  
Sirius blew open his door while Arthur ran in and stunned the Death Eater in the room before looking around while Remus was doing the same thing, only there were two Death Eaters in his room and Hermione and Cho stunned both of them with a full body bind spell.  
  
Moody looked around with approval. "I don't sense anymore Death Eaters around here. Search each of the rooms. Look for anything that could look like plans for some type of attack. Sirius - Remus - take the stunned Death Eaters and bind them tightly. We will want to question them under veritaserum later."  
  
While Sirius and Remus were busy dragging the Death Eaters into the hall and binding them, Harry, Hermione, and Cho were busying searching one of the rooms together while Walter was watching the staircase with Moody in case trouble came up.  
  
"Harry," Hermione said, catching his attention.  
  
"Yes Hermione?" Harry said.  
  
"What do you think we're looking for?" she asked.  
  
"I don't know. Look around at the desk," he said, pointing at the desk, which was located in front of a bookcase. "There might be a parchment in one of the drawers. I'll search the bookcase with Cho."  
  
As he searched the bookcase, Harry couldn't help thinking about the mission he was on. Everyone was safe, right? So why was he feeling so uneasy? They had successfully raided the house and the Death Eaters didn't know what hit them and he should be relieved, but he couldn't relax. Something was wrong.  
  
By then, Hermione finished looking over the desk and she looked over at Harry, only to notice the thoughtful expression upon his face. "Something wrong Harry?"  
  
Harry quickly looked at her and nodded. "Yeah, I was just thinking that this seems too easy and I can't help wondering that something is wrong."  
  
"Harry, you're just worrying too much," Hermione said, giving him a reassuring smile. "I'm glad that this mission is almost over and we can return. The Count and Walter are really scaring me. They've killed at least two Death Eaters already while everyone else has been stunning them."  
  
"Yeah, Walter killed a third one on the second floor," Harry remarked.  
  
"Really - you think that Dumbledore would want to hire someone else, like Mundungus Fletcher. He doesn't kill his enemies," Hermione said frowning.  
  
"Hey you two!" they heard Cho exclaim. "Look what I found."  
  
Harry and Hermione went over to her and saw that she had a book in her hands with a piece of parchment in it, but upon closer inspection, they saw that it wasn't any ordinary parchment, but plans for taking over Hogsmeade and freeing the Death Eaters in Azkaban.  
  
"Great Job Cho," Hermione said. "Let's take it to Moody."  
  
They stood up and had just walked out the door when they heard a yell coming from the first floor.  
  
"WE'RE UNDER ATTACK! IT'S AN AMBUSH!"  
  
Harry quickly ran over to the nearest window at the end of the hall and looked down. He saw about forty Death Eaters advancing on the house and looking over at the houses that they had come from, he saw that more were apparating there by the second. They were trapped.  
  
  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Thanks to everyone who reviewed:  
  
GazzadaSpazza: I'll think about the unicorn. It sounds like it would suit Hermione's personality.  
  
Angelis: Thanks for your nice review.  
  
Mikala: Thanks for reviewing and I hope I didn't disappoint you with this chapter.  
  
BloodRedSword & Phoenix of Light: Well, I made sure Malfoy was replaced on the mission. Hope you're happy.  
  
Dark Golo: You'll find out what Harry's sword does later. I can't tell you now. It'd ruin the fic. =) 


	17. Chapter 16: The Crucible

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 16: The Crucible  
  
The Death Eaters advancing on the house started firing curses at the two aurors guarding the entrance to the house. The curses hit them and both of them crumpled to the floor howling in pain as the Death Eaters continued to advance.  
  
Harry ran back towards the staircase and he saw that everyone was crowding around Moody, who was standing up against the wall near it.  
  
"We need to get out of here," Arthur said as Harry joined them. "Let's use the portkey you prepared Alastor."  
  
"I remember Arthur, don't rush me," Moody said before he reached into his robe and withdrew a small package.  
  
When he opened it, Harry saw that he was holding a small book. "This is the portkey - Miss Chang, since you have the information we need, you will go first. It should take you to Hogsmeade."  
  
Cho stepped forward and touched it, but if anyone was expecting her to disappear and hear the howling wind that accompanied it, they were sorely disappointed.  
  
"Why isn't it working?" Cho asked.  
  
"I don't know," Moody replied. "I was sure I had the right item, though someone at Hogwarts could have easily replaced it with a fake."  
  
"Great," Sirius said. "Now we're stuck here with three stunned Death Eaters."  
  
"They don't have any wands on them?" Walter asked.  
  
"No, I took them away and broke them," Remus replied and he produced three broken wands from his robe.  
  
"So what do we do?" Arthur said, hurriedly.  
  
"I'm not sure," Moody said, starting to walk down the stairs. "Let's go down to the second floor. Unfortunately they got us good. We were too busy searching everything to bother preparing for trouble."  
  
They were about to go down to the second floor when the Count came running up the stairs to the third floor with Percy. Percy looked tired and was leaning up against a wall with his wand in his hand. The Count on the other hand was holding a bloodstained sword and didn't show any signs of exhaustion, or at least none that Harry could tell since his face was still hidden under the hood of his cloak.  
  
"Don't bother going down there," Percy panted.  
  
"Why not?" Sirius asked.  
  
"They took over the first floor quickly. Everyone down there is either dead or dying," the Count explained. "The second floor is barely holding, but I don't know how long the aurors you left down there will hold off. They're trying to stop the Death Eaters from coming up the staircase."  
  
"That won't hold for long. What should we do?" Hermione said, starting to panic a bit.  
  
"Walter, did you bring the floo powder I told you to bring?" the Count asked. "That way we can go directly to the school."  
  
"Yes, I did my lord," Walter replied and he took a small pouch from his belt, giving it to Arthur. "It's in that bag. There's enough for all of us, but there aren't any fireplaces on the third floor."  
  
"There's one on the first floor," the Count stated. "It's in the room that you asked me to search earlier Alastor."  
  
"How do you suppose we get down there?" Harry finally asked. "The place is swarming with Death Eaters."  
  
"There is a way, but it puts you at great risk, Mr. Potter," the Count replied. "Are you willing to take the risk?"  
  
"Of course I am if it means that no one else will get killed," Harry said firmly. "Why do you need me though?"  
  
"Because we need two people to cover our escape once we get down to the first floor and you're the only other person who can conjure a shield strong enough to block most of the curses thrown at you," the Count explained quickly. "I will go down first with Walter. You will follow along with Miss Granger, but once we get down to the first floor, you will conjure a shield and cover any attacks from the right. I will do the same with the left side since the room is just across the hall from the staircase. Do you understand what you need to do?"  
  
Harry nodded.  
  
"Good, now follow me. Walter, I require your assistance," the Count said, motioning to Walter. "Let's go. I will lead the way. Mr. Potter, follow closely behind Walter and fire anything you can at any incoming Death Eaters."  
  
With that, the Count went down the stairs with Walter, to the second floor. Harry, Cho, and Hermione followed as well while everyone else took up the rear. Sirius and Remus were dragging the three captured Death Eaters by the ropes that they had conjured earlier used to bind them. They stumbled down the stairs, still dazed from being stunned earlier.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they got to the second floor, they saw that the aurors that were guarding the staircase to the first floor were lying on the floor, dead or badly injured and that the Death Eaters were approaching, wands raised.  
  
"CRUCIO!" one of the Death Eaters yelled, his wand pointed at the Count as he came down the hallway towards the staircase to the first floor.  
  
The curse shot from the wand towards the Count, but as Harry had seen in his first duel against the Count, a red circle with a red pentagram inscribed within it appeared below him and a shield rose up, reflecting the curse back at the Death Eater.  
  
The Death Eater, being too slow to move out of the way, was hit by his own curse and he screamed in pain as the Count approached, thrusting his bloodied sword into the Death Eater's heart before continuing towards the staircase.  
  
"Quickly, move!" the Count urged on as he slew another Death Eater, cutting him across the stomach and warm blood flowed from the wound, spraying onto the Count's black robes and onto the wall. The Death Eater fell down to the ground, dead.  
  
Harry stepped over the body with Cho following, looking very pale in the face, and clutching the book in one hand, her wand in the other. It was a while before they reached the staircase to the first floor since the Death Eaters were climbing the stairs at an alarming rate. However, they soon got the idea to stay back after each Death Eater that came up was slain by the Count or Walter, who was throwing his spears at them with deadly accuracy in between the flares of the Count's magical shield deflecting curses. Harry on the other hand, was covered with blood from being too close to the Count. The stench was really getting to him and he had the urge to throw up, but he held it in. Since Walter and the Count were doing most of the work, he only had to fire a few paralysing spells at the Death Eaters that came too close.  
  
When the got to the stairs, the Count walked down to the first floor, slaying a Death Eater that came too close. The body tumbled down the stairs, blood splattering on the walls as it fell. As much as Harry didn't like the sight of it and it made him sick that this was starting to turn into a bloodbath since the floor was covered in blood and dead bodies lining the hall, he was relieved that they were almost to their destination; the first floor. Arthur and Percy conjured up two stretchers and placed two of the aurors that were unconscious on the second floor and floated them down the stairs to join them followed by the others.  
  
"Alright, now we're on the first floor," the Count said as his shield once again reflected several curses back at their casters. "Mr. Potter - Miss Granger, cover the right side. I will take the left with Walter. Miss Chang - go to the room across the hall - Moody, cover her and get yourselves out of here. Sirius and Remus, take the prisoners with you, we can interrogate them when we get back to the school. Percy and Arthur, get the injured to the school first."  
  
Harry and Hermione ran to the right and Harry barely able had time to conjure a reflecting spell around them as several Death Eaters threw some curses at them. The reflecting spell worked as it was supposed to and it reflected the curses back at the Death Eaters, who fell to the ground with boils and tentacles appearing on them.  
  
From behind his shield, Harry was firing ice bolts at the Death Eaters, who were frozen solid or cut by the ice shards as they flew past them. Hermione was likewise firing curses at the Death Eaters coming from the right and each one that hit, a Death Eater fell to the ground, stunned.  
  
In the meantime, Cho, Moody, Arthur, and Percy were making their way across the hall to the room with Sirius and Remus following closely behind dragging the three captured Death Eaters along with them. Moody opened the door once they got to the room and Cho quickly went in, or tried to. She was immediately hit with a curse and fell to the ground screaming in pain. Moody looked up and saw that there were two Death Eaters in the room and that the window next to the fireplace was open.  
  
Harry heard Cho's scream and looked behind him to see that she had fallen in pain but she was still moving. Then Percy and Arthur fired curses at the pair of Death Eaters, who both fell to the ground, stunned before they went on to the fireplace with the two injured aurors while Moody covered the window to make sure no more Death Eaters got in.  
  
"Hermione," Harry yelled over the sound of curses being fired, "Cho's injured, let's withdraw."  
  
"How? We need to cover this side," Hermione yelled back as she fired another curse, dropping another Death Eater.  
  
"I have an idea, leave it to me. Go on and help Cho," Harry said. "Everyone's too busy to help her."  
  
"You're going to use the elemental magic again aren't you?"  
  
"There's no point in hiding it right now. Not when it will cover everyone's retreat. Now go."  
  
"Alright Harry, good luck," Hermione said and she ran over to help Cho to the fireplace.  
  
Once she was there, Harry then pointed his wand at the ground in front of him and said the spell for summoning a hydra.  
  
The ground shook and the stone floor broke in front of him as a large snake like creature with two heads rose from the ground. The Death Eaters in the hall froze in terror at the sight of it and were just standing there with mouths gaping and eyes bulging in fear.  
  
*Your bidding massster? * It hissed as it turned one of its heads to look at him.  
  
"Keep the Death Eaters busy while we're retreating and don't kill any of them," Harry said to the hydra, but to the Death Eaters in front of him, all they heard was him hissing at the hydra.  
  
The hydra then slithered towards the terrified Death Eaters who began to run in terror back down the hall, trampling over some of their comrades behind them as the hydra snapped at them. Soon the hallway was cleared and the hydra crashed through the door to chase the Death Eaters outside, slithering over some of the Death Eaters along the way.  
  
Harry grinned at the sight and he conjured a force field to cover the hall, so that no one could attack them from that side. Then he turned around to see how everyone was doing. His grin disappeared and changed to a look of disgust when he saw that the Count and Walter were still fighting off the Death Eaters on the left and he could see that the entire left side of the hallway was covered in blood and there were dead bodies covering the floor. Walter was still throwing spears at the Death Eaters, piercing them through the heart as always, but Harry noted that the Count was now only using his sword whenever a Death Eater came too close. Instead, the Count had his hand raised in front of him, palm facing outward and red ghost like creatures were coming forth from his hand. Each time one of the ghosts hit a Death Eater; the Death Eater fell to the ground, shivering in fear, as if their soul had been attacked.  
  
Meanwhile, Hermione had conjured a stretcher and placed Cho on it. Percy and Arthur went over to the fireplace with the two aurors on the stretchers behind them. They threw in a pinch of floo powder and each of them yelled 'Hogwarts' before entering the fireplace and disappearing with the injured aurors. Then Sirius and Remus came after conjuring ropes to bind the two stunned Death Eaters on the floor, adding two more prisoners. Sirius went in first, tugging at the ropes to drag the prisoners along with him.  
  
"See you at Hogwarts," Sirius said, grinning and he disappeared into the fireplace along with the five Death Eaters.  
  
"I'll take her, Hermione," Remus said. "Go ahead and help the others."  
  
"Thanks Professor Lupin," Hermione replied and she went back out to see if everyone was alright while Remus disappeared into the fireplace with Cho, who was holding the book with the information they needed on her chest.  
  
Hermione found Harry with Walter and the Count and went over to join them. She saw that Harry was firing ice bolts at the Death Eaters, freezing them and that Walter and the Count were still killing as many as they could in the hallway. All three of them were soaked in the blood of the fallen Death Eaters and Hermione couldn't resist throwing up at the sight of the hallway.  
  
"Everyone has already gone. We should go now," Hermione choked as the Count plunged his sword through another Death Eater that had come too close.  
  
"Alright, we will withdraw slowly," the Count said. "I'll, keep them busy. At least Mr. Potter was able to stop the ones coming from behind us so we don't need to worry about them. - Walter, help Moody defend the room."  
  
"Yes my lord," Walter replied and he ran into the room to see how Moody was doing.  
  
"Mr. Potter - Miss Granger," the Count said. "I'm going to back slowly into the room. Keep firing anything you can at the Death Eaters.  
  
As the Count backed up, the Death Eaters continued to fire curses at him, but his shield always appeared and deflected them. Harry and Hermione were firing ice bolts at the Death Eaters from behind the Count's shield. Their bolts hit some of the Death Eaters, who were now starting to keep their distance to avoid having to fight the Count, freezing them in place.  
  
Eventually they got to the door of the room and Harry was able to cast another one of his force fields to stop the Death Eaters from attacking them or entering the room. The Count closed the doors of the room just as the Death Eaters were starting to fill up the hallway just outside of the room. Harry cast another force field to hold the door in place and they could hear the sound of the Death Eaters attempting to get the door open, but to no avail.  
  
"There, that should stop them from entering," Harry said exhaustedly.  
  
"Alright, now we can go back to the school," said the Count, still unaffected by the battle, though his cloak was now drenched in blood and he still held his blood soaked sword in his right hand. "Alastor, let's go."  
  
Moody stopped firing curses out of the window he was at and took the bag of floo powder from the floor where Remus had left it. He then went over to the fireplace and threw some of it in before disappearing.  
  
"Now you and Miss Granger, get moving," the Count said.  
  
"What about you?" Harry asked.  
  
"I'll follow, now go," he replied.  
  
"See you at Hogwarts Harry," Hermione said to him cheerfully before she too disappeared into the fireplace.  
  
Harry too took a pinch of the floo powder and threw it into the fireplace before yelling 'HOGWARTS' and stepping in.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A few moments later, Harry appeared back in Dumbledore's office and he looked around to see that only Walter and Hermione were in the room, talking to Professor Dumbledore, however, the Count soon joined them.  
  
"Hello Mr. Potter - Miss Granger," the Count said, getting up as well. "Glad that you both made it in one piece."  
  
"So are we professor," Hermione said. "But I wish that we could have saved the other aurors that came along."  
  
"That is unfortunate, but such is the cost of war," the Count said without a hint of emotion. "However, their sacrifice wasn't in vain. We have the information we need, thanks to Miss Chang."  
  
"Where did everyone else go?" Harry finally asked.  
  
"Miss Chang and the two aurors are in the hospital wing being checked by Madam Pomfrey. Miss Chang gave me the book with the information before Remus took her to the infirmary. As for Sirius, Moody, Percy and Arthur, they are all dealing with the prisoners in the East Tower. The rest of the students are also back from their trip to Hogsmeade," Dumbledore explained.  
  
"Will they be alright?" said Harry.  
  
"Yes, but you and Miss Granger must go to the infirmary. You'll want to get out of those blood soaked robes so that no one questions you. Walter will accompany you," Dumbledore explained.  
  
"What about Professor Sepet?" Hermione asked.  
  
"I will be staying here and give the headmaster a report of the mission," the Count said. "I'll go to the hospital wing afterwards."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When Harry, Hermione and Walter arrived at the hospital wing, Madam Pomfrey had just finished checking on Cho and the two aurors were lying on the two beds to her left but Remus was nowhere in sight. They walked in and Madam Pomfrey came over to them.  
  
"You again?" she said to Harry. "I wonder what you've been up to Mr. Potter. A year hasn't gone by where you haven't ended up in here, but have a seat on the bed and I'll look you over. Same goes for you Miss Granger and you professor."  
  
Harry went over to the empty bed next to Cho and sat down as Madam Pomfrey went into her office to grab some potions. But once he sat down, he finally threw up on the floor, from the stench that had been lingering on his blood soaked robes.  
  
"I see that you couldn't take it anymore, Mr. Potter," Walter said, laughing as he took a seat in a chair next to Harry's bed. "Though I must say you lasted a lot longer than Miss Granger in holding your stomach. But don't worry, you'll get used to the smell eventually."  
  
Hermione, meanwhile, had sat down on the bed next to Harry and he could see that she too was soaked in blood, but not to the extent that Harry was. She was looking green in the face and she eventually threw up on the floor as well.  
  
"I hope you two don't do that anymore," Madam Pomfrey said, coming out of her office holding two red potions. "Miss Chang did the same thing and its hard enough keeping this place sterile without my patients throwing up all over the floor or leaving bloody footprints for that matter."  
  
Harry looked at the floor and he saw that she was right, the blood on their shoes had left footprints on the ground and he wondered what the other students would think when they found their bloody footprints in the hallway.  
  
"Here, drink these. They'll help you get better," Madam Pomfrey said, handing them the potions, which Harry and Hermione drank gratefully, before she went over to tend to Walter.  
  
The taste was bitter, but Harry was glad that he wouldn't be throwing up anymore, as was Hermione. Harry then looked over at Cho to see how she was doing. She was sleeping peacefully and that her injuries were healed, however, the two aurors in the two beds on her left were still had scars from being attacked by the Death Eaters.  
  
"How are you feeling Harry?" Hermione asked, drawing his attention back to her.  
  
"I'm doing alright," he replied. "Though I think I'll still be smelling the blood for several days."  
  
"I know what you mean," Hermione said disgustedly.  
  
"Well Mr. Potter - Miss Granger," Walter said as Madam Pomfrey had finished with him. "I'll be taking my leave right now. I believe I have some prisoners to interrogate."  
  
"What about your clothes?" Hermione asked. "Aren't you going to clean the blood off of it?"  
  
"Yes, I will have to do that yes, along with my dagger," Walter said, getting up. "But I'll wait until I finish interrogating the prisoners to do that. I find that they are more willing to talk when I'm looking like this."  
  
Walter started to leave when Harry called him again.  
  
"Walter, what did you ever do with Malfoy that caused him to be replaced by Cho?" Harry asked curiously.  
  
Walter turned around and smiled at Harry. "Ah, I was wondering when you would ask that. It was rather entertaining indeed. Pity that you couldn't have seen it. You see, after your little encounter with Mr. Malfoy in Professor Snape's classroom, I noticed how you much you two disliked him. Therefore I took it upon myself to replace him. With the way he was acting that day, I thought he might become a bit of a liability on our mission with his attitude."  
  
"After you two left yesterday with Mr. Weasley, I had my skeleton soldiers drag the three to the dungeons where I kept my office. The look of horror on his paralysed face was priceless. I couldn't keep from chuckling to myself all the way to my office, but once they were there, I undid the curses you cast on them. They naturally came to, but when they fully came to their senses, they noticed the two undead soldiers at the door, they immediately back up against the wall, hugging each other like scared children," Walter continued, now chortling happily. "I gave them their wands, but since they knew how to cast freezing charms, I put some anti- freezing protections on my two soldiers. This way, if they tried a freezing charm, it would just reflect and they would freeze themselves. It makes things interesting don't you think?"  
  
Large grins were now creeping on Harry and Hermione's faces as Walter continued his narrative of what he had done to Malfoy.  
  
"Once that was done, I exited my office, leaving my minions to keep the three of the entertained, but don't worry, they won't kill them. I locked the door behind me and raised a bone wall on the outside. That way if they managed to destroy the two skeletons in there and open the door, they would still be trapped inside. After that, I went to go look for Miss Chang since I thought she would be the most reliable replacement and she accepted willingly," Walter said before sighing to himself. "Sometimes I wish I could pull more jokes on people like I did with Mr. Malfoy, it makes my job a lot more entertaining.."  
  
"Speaking of which, I should go check on my prisoners down in the dungeons and let them out before paying a visit to the captured Death Eaters. I'm sure that Mr. Malfoy doesn't want to be left down there a minute longer," Walter said with a grin. "Good day Mr. Potter - Miss Granger."  
  
With that, Walter left, leaving Harry and Hermione alone in the Hospital Wing, who were now laughing at Walter's story. Madam Pomfrey then went over to them again and looked them over.  
  
"Really. That man is very unhygienic, leaving blood all over his clothes," Madam Pomfrey said, shaking her head. " - I had Remus bring you some clean robes since the headmaster said you would need them and he was right. Change into those and once I make sure that you're not suffering from any injuries, the headmaster says you may return to your dorms."  
  
Madam Pomfrey had them change out of their robes and into some pyjamas until Remus could bring them their clean robes. Harry turned around while Hermione changed and she did likewise when Harry was changing.  
  
"We should take our shoes off before we head back," Harry said, glad that the bloody robes were taken away. "We don't want to leave anymore footprints on the way back to our dorm."  
  
"You're right, but what will people think when we go back in our socks?" Hermione questioned.  
  
"We'll just say our shoes got dirty when we were serving detention and had to have them cleaned. Besides, I'm sure that the house elves wouldn't mind cleaning them for us."  
  
Hermione glared at Harry for his last statement and he gave her an innocent look. "I'm sorry, I meant Dobby because he's paid for his work."  
  
Her face softened a bit. "What about Ron? What do we tell him since we're back later than we should be? Getting out of that house took a very long time."  
  
"We'll just say we had to do something for Walter in his office," Harry suggested. "That way he won't question us too much."  
  
"That works, though we'll have to make up a story about our shoes. Perhaps we spilled something on it and it ate through our shoes, so we had to replace them," Hermione said.  
  
"We'll have to leave our shoes here then and let Madam Pomfrey take care of them," Harry pointed out.  
  
"That'll have to do then. I have an extra pair of shoes in my room," Hermione said. "What about you?"  
  
"Yes, I made sure to bring a second pair of shoes with me in my trunk," Harry replied. "Oh Hermione - what did you want to tell me in person before we left?"  
  
"Uh - I -," she started to say nervously, but she never got to finish because Remus Lupin entered the hospital wing at that moment with their clean robes.  
  
"Hello you two," Remus said giving them a smile. "Glad that you made it back. Mission accomplished too."  
  
"Hello Professor," Hermione said, turning to him. "Thank you for bringing our robes. We could do without the blood stained ones."  
  
"You're welcome Hermione, and stop calling me professor," said Remus. "Its annoying enough having every phoenix member call me that."  
  
Hermione gave him an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, Remus. I'll stop."  
  
"Well, here are your robes," he said giving them their clean robes. "Now I need to go to see Professor Dumbledore. I will see you later."  
  
"Bye Remus," Harry and Hermione echoed.  
  
After Remus left, Harry and Hermione changed into their clean robes and made their way back to the Gryffindor tower barefooted since their socks were also soaked in blood.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they got to the portrait outside the common room, they said the password and the portrait swung aside so that they could enter.  
  
Once they got into the common room, they saw that everyone was there talking, playing exploding snap, or Wizard's chess. Ron was sitting in an armchair and when he saw them enter, he immediately ran over to them.  
  
"Where did you two go?" Ron asked. "You have been gone for almost the entire day. I didn't think Dumbledore would give you detention for that long. I was starting to get worried that Snape did something to you both and you couldn't come back. Dinner will be starting soon."  
  
"We had to do something for Walter again as our punishment for cursing Malfoy," Hermione said. "We were in his office down in the dungeons cleaning it up."  
  
"Malfoy missed the Hogsmeade trip too," Ron said delightedly. "At least I didn't have him bothering me. You two must have done something really bad for him to still be in the infirmary. I should have paid him a visit to gloat a bit, but I figured he's not worth the effort."  
  
"I'm glad that you didn't go to see him," Hermione said. "It's about time you realise he's not worth the trouble.  
  
Harry looked relieved. Ron thought that Malfoy was still in the infirmary and he was glad that he didn't bother to go check. However, he was still feeling dirty from having been drenched in blood and wanted to shower.  
  
"Well, I'm off to shower," Harry said walking upstairs. "Cleaning Walter's office can be hazardous. I'll see you at dinner."  
  
"I'm going too, I feel dirty after having been down there," Hermione added and she too started going up. "See you at dinner Ron."  
  
"Alright, go ahead, it certainly sounds like you need a bath. You both smell like death right now," Ron said, noticing the smell, but while they were on their way up, Ron caught the fact that they were both barefooted.  
  
"Say - why are you both barefooted?" he asked catching their attention again.  
  
"Oh, we melted the heels of our shoes when we stepped in one of Walter's potions that we spilled," Hermione lied. "Walter is going to repair our shoes for us and the socks got dirty also."  
  
"Alright then, hurry up, it's getting boring without you both around and I want to play a game of exploding snap," Ron said and they continued on their way up to shower.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A/N: So what'd you guys think? Walter and Professor Sepet make a good team, don't you think?  
  
Message to people who reviewed:  
  
Angelis: Glad you like my cliffhanger.  
  
The Game: How I update so fast is my secret =)  
  
Mikala: I'm glad I didn't disappoint you with the previous chapter.  
  
".": Thanks for the review. Its good that people like the characters I added in.  
  
GazzadaSpazza: As much as the frozen orb spell would have come in handy, it attacks everyone standing around you. That's why Harry had Cho lie on the ground before he cast it in ch. 14. This time, everyone's standing and Harry doesn't need the friendly fire, so I had him use the hydra instead. Besides it works well with Harry's parseltongue ability.  
  
" ": Thanks for reviewing. I'm glad you like the story. 


	18. Chapter 17: The Dream

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 17: The Dream  
  
The morning after, Harry awoke with his scar burning again. He had another horrible nightmare, only this time it seemed so real that he was drenched in cold sweat.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
In a cold, dark chamber, three men were present. The first, kneeling on the ground, was dressed in a hooded black robe with the hood up and is carrying a sword underneath it. The second man was standing, also dressed in a black robe, however, his face was skull white and he had a flat nose with slits for nostrils. Finally, the third was whimpering at the second man's side in fear.  
  
"My lord," said the kneeling Death Eater. "Everything is now ready. The downfall of all those who would oppose us will come soon."  
  
"Excellent. What do you plan to do with that bumbling fool, Fudge?" Voldemort asked coldly.  
  
"He is still unaware of the danger that lies before him. I will make sure he remains that way," the Death Eater replied.  
  
"See that you do. - Now what of this news that I have heard about?"  
  
"What news my lord?"  
  
"Don't play games with me," Voldemort said giving the Death Eater a stare that made him shiver. "You know very well what I mean; about Potter's bold raid on our little enclave within Kilndar."  
  
"I set an ambush for him," the Death Eater replied. "He shouldn't have survived."  
  
"HE SURVIVED!" Voldemort hissed loudly. "AND THEY CAPTURED FIVE OF OUR OWN!"  
  
The Death Eater withdrew in fear at the remark, but continued to talk.  
  
"My l-lord, my ap-ologies for my failure. I s-shall make it up to you," the Death Eater stuttered.  
  
"See that you don't fail me again or I will make sure it's the last mistake you ever make," Voldemort said softly, but menacingly enough that the Death Eater got the idea to leave.  
  
"M-Master is merciful. I shall take care of it," the Death Eater said, withdrawing quietly out the door, making sure not to turn his back on Voldemort.  
  
"Wormtail," Voldemort said.  
  
"Y-Yes my master?" Wormtail whimpered.  
  
"Keep an eye on him and if he fails again, take care of him,"  
  
"As you wish my lord," Wormtail said, sounding relieved that nothing would happen to him, and got up to leave.  
  
"Oh, Wormtail," Voldemort called, causing Wormtail to freeze in place, "See that you don't fail either or I will make sure you regret it."  
  
"Y-y-yes my l-l-lord," said Wormtail cringing in fear, but he managed to leave the chamber.  
  
The scene changed to what looked like a dungeon. Five Death Eaters were shackled in chains connected to the wall.  
  
The door opened and a man entered. It was the same Death Eater that Voldemort had talked to earlier. He approached the first Death Eater and woke him.  
  
"Wh- Who are you?" the chained Death Eater asked.  
  
"I'm here to liberate you," the hooded Death Eater said coolly drawing his sword from underneath his robes.  
  
"T-Thank you," the Death Eater replied, looking relieved, however, the look changed to one of surprise when the hooded Death Eater plunged the sword into his stomach.  
  
"Wh-What are y-you do-ing?" the Death Eater choked, blood coming out of his mouth.  
  
"I can't have you telling our secrets to Dumbledore, now can I?" the Death Eater replied gleefully as he twisted the sword in the Death Eater's stomach before withdrawing it.  
  
The chained Death Eater collapsed onto the floor, dead and the hooded Death Eater went over to each of the chained prisoners and thrust his sword into the heart of each one.  
  
Once he made sure each one was dead, he wiped the blood on the robes of the nearest Death Eater, sheathed the sword again and hurried out of the dungeon.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Harry sat up in bed, his hand going to his scar, which was still burning painfully. It eventually stopped burning and he looked around. It was 5:00 in the morning and no one was awake yet, so he quickly changed and went down to the common room.  
  
The common room was empty and the fire was still burning brightly. Harry took a seat in the armchair by the fire so that he could think about the dream he had. It certainly seemed real. Maybe it was true and the prisoners they captured were dead, but they were still alive last night, so how could anyone kill them unless there was a Death Eater at the school.  
  
No one fit that profile except for Snape, but he was now working as a spy and wouldn't do that. Of course there was also Professor Sepet. The count was always dressed in black and he did fit the profile of the Death Eater in his dream. He also was the only professor who carried a sword around. Now the question would be: Why would Professor Sepet go to great lengths to kill every Death Eater and get them out of the house that they were trapped in, but then go and kill the five prisoners?  
  
*I need to sort this out, * Harry thought. *Maybe a little walk will help. *  
  
With that, Harry got up and exited the common room through the portrait. Although students weren't allowed to go outside on their own, due to Voldemort's return, Harry decided that it wouldn't hurt if he went out for a while. It would be another two hours until breakfast was served anyway.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Harry walked down the stairs leading down the tower and started walking towards the lake. However, along the way, he passed the infirmary and thought he would see Cho for a while. After all, she was a friend and what harm would it do to visit her? She was the one to find the information they needed for their next mission.  
  
Harry entered the hospital wing and Madam Pomfrey came out to see who it was.  
  
"What do you want Mr. Potter?" Madam Pomfrey asked warily.  
  
"I just would like to see Cho," Harry replied, looking over at Cho who was still lying in the bed. However, the two aurors he saw yesterday weren't present.  
  
"Alright, but you'll have to be very quiet, she's still sleeping," Madam Pomfrey said and went back into her office.  
  
Harry walked over to where Cho was and pulled up a chair so that he could sit next to her bed.  
  
"Hello Cho," Harry whispered. "I just came to visit you but you're still asleep so.."  
  
Harry didn't get to finish as Cho stirred in her sleep and her eyes fluttered open. She looked around sleepily until her eyes fell on Harry sitting in the chair next to her bed.  
  
"Good morning Harry," Cho said giving him a weak smile. "How long have you been here?"  
  
"I just arrived. You've been out since yesterday," Harry explained. "How are you feeling?"  
  
"I'm feeling fine but what happened? Did we succeed?" Cho asked.  
  
"Two Death Eaters in the room you entered cursed you. Professor Moody last year would have had a fit," Harry teased.  
  
"Oh shut up, I thought the room was clear," Cho retorted.  
  
"It was, but the window was open."  
  
"I guess I'll have to watch my back on the next mission, won't I?"  
  
"You sure will," Harry said grinning.  
  
"So what are you doing up so early?" Cho asked.  
  
"I couldn't sleep, so I decided to take a walk, but I passed by here and so here I am."  
  
"That's very sweet of you," Cho said, blushing. "Thank you."  
  
"For what?" Harry asked with a confused look.  
  
"For helping everyone get out of the house and for visiting me," Cho said with a smile. "Professor Lupin told me that it was you who had told Hermione to get me out of there."  
  
"You're welcome then, but you know I wouldn't want anyone left behind," Harry said.  
  
"I'm grateful, but why couldn't you sleep?"  
  
"I had a nightmare, that's all."  
  
"Oh, care to tell me about it?"  
  
"Uh, I guess, since I have no one else to talk to at the moment."  
  
"I understand. Hermione would be the one you'd talk to, wouldn't she?"  
  
Harry blushed slightly at the question, but he nodded. "She's my best friend and stood by me even though everyone didn't believe me in my second year and last year when everyone thought that I put my name in the Goblet instead of the fake Professor Moody."  
  
"I see," Cho said, her face dropping at what Harry had said. " - Well, you might as well tell me what you were dreaming."  
  
So Harry told Cho about his dream and the hooded Death Eater killing the prisoners. Cho was a good listener and she took in everything better than anyone else, save Hermione and Dumbledore, would have taken it.  
  
"What do you plan to do?" Cho asked once he had finished.  
  
"I don't know. I've had these dreams before and something tells me this might happen, but I don't know what I could do," Harry replied.  
  
"Talk to Dumbledore, he could do something about it," Cho suggested.  
  
"I think you might be right in this case, but if it turns out that everything is alright, then I'll have wasted his time over some crazy nightmare of mine."  
  
"Well, its better that you waste our time trying to prevent something like that from happening than we find out its true and we lose our chance to find out important information that could save lives," Cho pointed out.  
  
"You're right. I'll go talk to Professor Dumbledore about it," Harry said as Madam Pomfrey walked in from her office.  
  
"Mr. Potter," Madam Pomfrey said quietly, but with a tone that indicated her displeasure. "Miss Chang needs her rest. I told you not to disturb her, now out with you."  
  
"I think you should go. Sorry that you got into trouble, Harry," Cho said apologetically.  
  
"It's alright. If the situation were reversed, she'd throw you out too," Harry said with a small smile.  
  
"Bye Harry," Cho called quietly as Harry got up and exited the medical wing.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Once Harry exited the room, he realised that he still had another hour before breakfast, so he decided to go visit Hagrid. He hadn't seen Hagrid except in Care of Magical Creatures. However ever since Malfoy was attacked by Buckbeak the hippogriff in their 3rd year, Hagrid hadn't introduced any potentially dangerous creatures for fear that something like that would happen again.  
  
When Harry got to Hagrid's hut, he knocked on the door and heard a loud voice.  
  
"Jus' a minute," the voice said.  
  
The door opened seconds later revealing Hagrid's large frame. Hagrid looked down and when he saw Harry, his face broke into a large grin.  
  
"Harry!" Hagrid said enthusiastically. "Come in! How are yeh?"  
  
"I'm doing great Hagrid," Harry relied grinning. "I couldn't sleep so I decided to take a walk."  
  
"Care for some rock cakes?" Hagrid asked, offering him a plate.  
  
"No thanks Hagrid. I'm not hungry."  
  
"Suit yerself. Madam Maxine made them this time," Hagrid said happily.  
  
"Oh? Did you go visit her over the summer?" Harry asked.  
  
"O' course I did. Dumbledore sent me on a mission with her to see if the gi- ," Hagrid started to say.  
  
"Forget I said anythin'," Hagrid said gruffly.  
  
"Why? You're working for Dumbledore now as part of the Phoenix Order right?" Harry asked.  
  
"Yes, but how'd yeh know about that?"  
  
"Because I'm in the Order too," Harry stated.  
  
"Oh, in that case. I guess I could tell yeh. - We went on a mission fer Dumbledore to see if we could get the giants to join us," Hagrid explained. "But they're too wary of either side to want to join us."  
  
"But that's alright. I guess yeh can't have everythin'," Hagrid said sadly.  
  
"Well, I should be going to breakfast now," Harry said. "I'll see you later Hagrid."  
  
"Bye Harry," Hagrid replied as Harry got up and walked outside. "And say 'hello' to Hermione and Ron for me."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When Harry got to the Great Hall, he noticed Hermione was there, eating breakfast and reading what looked like the Daily Prophet, but Ron wasn't present.  
  
"Hi Hermione," Harry said, walking up to her.  
  
"Hi Harry! Look at this!" Hermione said, handing him the paper as he sat down.  
  
Death & Destruction at Kilndar  
  
Yesterday afternoon, a small group of aurors belonging to our own Ministry of Magic forcibly entered a house in the town of Kilndar. It appears that the house belonged to a group of You-Know-Who's Death Eaters due to the Dark Mark that was found above the house.  
  
The aurors who entered the house appeared to have been looking for something and a skirmish ensued between the Death Eaters and the ministry aurors. They managed to kill at least 40 of the Death Eaters as the halls were lined with dead bodies. A few of the Death Eaters have been identified as wanted criminals; however it appears that the aurors were ambushed and wiped out.  
  
Due to the amount of damage done and the use of weapons other than wands, it is estimated that at least two aurors with swords or some other weapons escaped. Traces of floo powder were found in the fireplace on the first floor.  
  
According to a statement by Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, "This is just an isolated incident. You-Know-Who has not returned and I would like the public to know that these are just a group of terrorists who are being hunted down by the Ministry."  
  
The whereabouts of the auror who escaped the house is unknown and no leads have been found.  
  
Maria Screech, Daily Prophet  
  
"So they don't suspect that we were even there. That's good," Harry said, looking up from the paper and handing it back to Hermione. "Where's Ron anyway?"  
  
"I expect he's still asleep. He never wakes early. Really, I wonder how's going to manage his prefect duties like that," Hermione said, shaking her head and putting the paper in her bag.  
  
"I went to visit Hagrid earlier," Harry said. "He's doing alright and he told me to say hello for him. He'll also be coming to the next meeting we have."  
  
At that moment Ron came running into the Hall, looking as if he was at his wit's end.  
  
"HEY HARRY - HERMIONE!" Ron shouted, causing many of the students to look in his direction.  
  
"Shh, not so loud," Hermione scolded. "What's wrong?"  
  
"Killed - Death Eaters - east tower," Ron said quickly.  
  
"Calm down Ron, you're not making much sense," Hermione said. "Now explain what happened."  
  
"You see I passed by the East tower along the way because that's where my route takes me and I heard someone coming," Ron explained, calming down. "Well, I hid behind a suit of armour and I saw someone in a hooded robe come around the corner."  
  
"They entered the tower and he looked suspicious so followed him up," Ron continued. "- He entered the room and I saw five people chained to the walls. They looked like Death Eaters and he said something to one of them. It sounded like he would free them, and he drew a sword from underneath his robe. But instead of cutting the chains, he thrust the sword into the Death Eater's stomach. He killed him - and the others too. I hid behind the door when he exited. "  
  
"What? Why didn't you go to Professor McGonagall instead of coming to us?" Hermione said alarmed.  
  
"I didn't know where she was, and I thought you two would know," Ron countered.  
  
"We should go see Professor Dumbledore. You coming Harry?" Hermione said, turning to look at Harry who was sitting there with a horrified look on his face. His mouth was moving but no words were coming out.  
  
"Harry, what's wrong?" Hermione asked worriedly, getting his attention.  
  
"Uh, nothing," Harry replied.  
  
"It's not nothing because you've got a look on your face that says you know something," Hermione countered. "Now tell us."  
  
"Alright," Harry gave in. "I had a nightmare last night and I woke up with my scar burning. Well, what you told us Ron, that was my nightmare."  
  
"WHAT?" Hermione said loudly, causing people to look in her direction, but she shook it off. "You mean to tell me that you knew that this might happen and you didn't wake me up?"  
  
"I couldn't have just strolled into the girls' dorms, I'd get into trouble, you know that," Harry pointed out.  
  
"I don't care if you had to do that, but this was important. Now we need to go see Dumbledore," Hermione said.  
  
"Am I missing something that you two know about?" Ron cut in.  
  
"Well, from the description of the person, it was probably Professor Sepet," Harry suggested thoughtfully. "He's the only teacher that carries a sword around."  
  
"That's true," Ron agreed. "But you carry one too, and so did Malfoy."  
  
"Malfoy got his sword taken away. It couldn't be him and are you saying that I killed those Death Eaters?" Harry asked not surprised that Ron might even suggest such a thing.  
  
"Well, you did say you had a dream about it, so that would mean that you knew where they were," Ron said before thinking.  
  
"RON - Do you have any idea how absurd that is? You're accusing your best friend of murdering people that he doesn't know about?" Hermione defended.  
  
"Sorry," Ron said sheepishly.  
  
"Enough of this. We need to see Dumbledore," said Harry finally and the trio went to find him.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
They ran all the way over to the stone gargoyle outside of Dumbledore's office, but this time they didn't have to guess the password since Cho had used it yesterday.  
  
"Chocolate Frogs," Harry said and the gargoyle hopped aside, allowing them entrance.  
  
"Hey, how come you knew the password?" Ron asked suspiciously as they entered and walked up the stairs.  
  
"Because we served detention with him yesterday and we had to come here anyway," Harry replied to Ron's satisfaction.  
  
"Oh, I forgot about that. - I also heard some students talking about some attack on a Death Eater house by the ministry. You know anything about that?" questioned Ron.  
  
"Yes, it was in the Daily Prophet," Hermione said. "Honestly, don't you ever read the paper?"  
  
"No, I don't. - But Fred and George were also telling me that they saw some blood all over the floor yesterday. Wouldn't have something to do with you two would it? I mean you two were walking barefooted into the common room yesterday."  
  
Fortunately they got up to Dumbledore's office by then and Harry and Hermione were saved the trouble of having to answer his question.  
  
Professor Dumbledore was sitting at his desk when they came in.  
  
"Hello you three," said Dumbledore. "What can I do for you?"  
  
Harry quickly explained to Dumbledore about his dream and Ron immediately backed it up by telling him what he had seen earlier that morning, while Hermione added her theory on who it was based on the description of Ron's Death Eater.  
  
"I see," Dumbledore said calmly. "So the prisoners are dead. This certainly does call for extra security. I shall inform the others immediately."  
  
"Is that all? What about Professor Sepet?" Hermione asked. "He's clearly the Death Eater."  
  
"He's out on a mission that I sent him on, but don't worry, I will deal with him when the time comes. This isn't the first accusation that someone's made against him," Dumbledore said.  
  
"WHAT?" Hermione said exasperated. "He just killed five Death Eaters which could be useful to us and he's gone?"  
  
"Please calm down Miss Granger," Dumbledore said calmly.  
  
"Who made the first accusation against Professor Sepet?" Ron asked.  
  
"Alas, I cannot answer that Mr. Weasley. You understand due to safety concerns, the accusing party must be kept confidential," said Dumbledore. "Now run along. I will take care of this."  
  
Seeing that they wouldn't get anywhere arguing with him, the three of them grudgingly left the room and returned to the common room.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The common room was fairly empty with the exception of a few students when they got there but just in case, they went over to a corner so that they could chat by themselves.  
  
"What do you think Sepet is up to?" Ron asked.  
  
"I don't know. If he is a Death Eater, he killed them because he doesn't want them to be questioned and he's gone now," Hermione stated irritably.  
  
"We have that much, but what are Death Eaters doing at this school?" said Ron.  
  
"I don't know. It might have something to do with the auror attack on Kilndar yesterday," Harry said.  
  
"Why bring them here instead of Azkaban?" asked Ron.  
  
"You heard Dumbledore last year, Azkaban is full of dementors, they would turn on us the moment they got the chance. They are You-Know-Who's natural allies," Harry pointed out. "So this would be the safest place to keep them without any trouble."  
  
"Well trouble seems to follow us around," Ron said sarcastically.  
  
"We should try to do something about it even if Dumbledore isn't," Hermione said.  
  
"Alright, but how do we get past his shield?" Harry asked.  
  
"Shield? What shield?" Ron asked, giving them a quizzical look.  
  
"Every time someone attacks Sepet, a shield appears and defends him," Hermione explained. "I saw it used when he was duelling Harry."  
  
"Oh that could be a problem," Ron said. "Is there anything we could do about it?"  
  
"I don't know but Sepet sure is acting very suspiciously," Hermione said.  
  
"Yeah, he has been gone during the daytime and he rarely eats anything," Ron said.  
  
"Well, I'm off to the library," Hermione said finally.  
  
"What for?" Harry asked.  
  
"I'm going to see if I can find something to help us defeat Sepet," Hermione said getting up. "Are you coming?"  
  
"Yeah, I'll come," Ron said getting up as well.  
  
"Sure, why not," Harry echoed, however Professor McGonagall decided to enter the common room at that moment and call them back.  
  
"Mr. Potter - Miss Granger," she said seriously. "Follow me."  
  
They knew better than to question her, so Harry and Hermione followed her out of the common room while Ron looked at them with jealousy.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Moments later, the two of them found themselves back in Dumbledore's office, only Hagrid and the two aurors that were present as well, however, Professor Sepet was not present as Dumbledore had said earlier. Harry took a seat next to Cho, who apparently had recovered fully, while Hermione sat to his right.  
  
"Feeling better Cho?" Harry whispered to her.  
  
"Yes, thanks for asking, though Madam Pomfrey was grumbling about letting me go early," Cho whispered back giggling slightly, and they both turned their attention to Dumbledore as he got up to speak.  
  
"As you know, yesterday, we conducted a raid on the Death Eaters in the town of Kilndar. Although we lost 8 excellent aurors, we did manage to get the information we needed, thanks to Miss Chang," Dumbledore said. "As an added bonus, we also captured five Death Eaters, however, this morning, one of the prefects, Mr. Ron Weasley (To the surprise of Arthur, Percy and Bill), informed me that they were killed by someone in this school."  
  
"I do not know how they found out about the Death Eaters, but the fact that there is a Death Eater around the school, we must take counter measures for our own safety. Therefore, I will petition for some aurors to be stationed at this school," Dumbledore continued. " - Rubeus Hagrid will now present some information on his mission during the summer, followed by Professor Laikov presenting the information that he managed to gather yesterday interrogating the five Death Eaters before they were killed."  
  
Hagrid stood up and walked over to the centre of the room.  
  
"Over the summer, I was sent on a mission by Professor Dumbledore to see if we could get the giants teh join us," Hagrid said proudly. "Unfortunately, they decided teh stay neutral since they were tired of having both the Dark Wizards and us tell them what teh do."  
  
"Thank you Rubeus. Professor Laikov, you may now make your presentation," Dumbledore said as Hagrid returned to his seat and Walter stood up.  
  
"Last night, Professor Snape and myself questioned the Death Eaters under veritaserum and they yielded only one useful bit of information. They told us that they were there because they wanted to gather forces so they could take over the town first. From there, they planned to free the Death Eaters from Azkaban," Walter said and sat down once again.  
  
"Thank you Professor Laikov. - Now, we must plan for our next mission, which will be preventing the Death Eaters in Azkaban from being freed," Dumbledore said. "Professor Laikov, did you get the approximate time that they would be attempting to free them?"  
  
"Yes I did," Walter replied. "They said it would take place around the middle of November, which gives us more than a month to prepare. The information that Miss Chang obtained for us also mentioned an attack on Hogsmeade, however, it appears that it will not go through. As for the town of Kilndar, I doubt that the Death Eaters will return there since the public is now on the lookout for any suspicious activity and our opponents will have to change their timetables a bit."  
  
"Very well. - Serverus, I must ask you to go gather some information for us once again. We will need to gather the approximate time that they will be making the attempt," Dumbledore said.  
  
"I shall do as you wish, headmaster," Snape replied affirmatively.  
  
"Now, does anyone have any comments or questions?" Dumbledore asked.  
  
At that, an auror, which Harry didn't recognise, stood up.  
  
"I just would like to ask as to why you hired this cold bastard," he said in an accusing tone, pointing to Walter. "I saw him and that inhumane thing, kill every Death Eater that stood in their way rather than deal with them in a civilised manner yesterday. If it weren't for Sirius Black and Mr. Lupin, I don't think we would have gotten any prisoners. Our ministry wouldn't have even considered hiring such merciless aurors."  
  
Walter then stood up to meet the accusation. "I don't know why you go to great lengths to avoid killing them; these are terrorists and must be dealt with mercilessly. If you aren't going to wipe out the ones within your own territories, how to you expect to wipe out Voldemort's (At which everyone but Harry and Dumbledore flinched) followers anywhere else? They will not hesitate to kill you, as you had seen them do to your comrades yesterday and might I remind you that I was the one who helped make sure that those that who weren't killed, returned safely."  
  
"Then why didn't your master do something about those on the first floor?" the auror returned sharply.  
  
"Watch your tongue or I will teach you to respect members of the nobility. He couldn't do anything about the ones on the first floor because they were already dead when he got to them," Walter said calmly, though it was clear that he was starting to lose his patience.  
  
"Or did he kill them himself? If he wasn't hesitant to kill the Death Eaters, he probably wouldn't have a prob-" the auror started to say, but never finished as Walter got up faster than Harry thought was possible and in one swift motion, he had an arm around the auror's chest and a knife up against his throat.  
  
"That's enough Professor," Dumbledore intervened. He wasn't at all pleased with the way the meeting was turning out. "Might I remind you that we are all on the same side and shouldn't be throwing accusations against each other. Now please put away your weapon."  
  
"As you wish," Walter said and he withdrew his knife from the auror's throat and sheathed it. The auror quickly backed away in fear, rubbing his throat.  
  
"To avoid further unpleasantness, I believe that is all for today. You are all dismissed," Dumbledore closed.  
  
Once that was said, everyone got up and exited the room. Harry and Hermione made their way back to the Gryffindor tower.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they arrived, they said the password to the tower (Chimaera) and entered. They found Ron still in the common room, sitting in one of the armchairs looking dazed.  
  
"Hey Ron," Harry said, as they walked up to him.  
  
"Oh, hi you two," Ron said, looking a bit disappointed. "Did you find anything?"  
  
"No, Professor McGonagall just wanted to help her with something," Hermione explained. "Though she did mention that Sepet was acting suspiciously."  
  
"I see," Ron said, still staring ahead as if in thought.  
  
"Is something wrong?" Hermione asked worriedly.  
  
"No, nothing's wrong with my two best friends disappearing at different times during the day and not coming back for a couple hours," Ron snapped and he got up and stormed out up the stairs to the boys' dormitories causing some people to turn their heads.  
  
"I wonder why he snapped so quickly," Harry asked, confused.  
  
"I think he's just mad that we're together so often and he feels left out," Hermione said. "He'll get over it eventually. There hasn't been a year where he hasn't accused one of us of being up to something."  
  
Harry grinned at that comment. "Yeah, you're right Hermione. He always does get over it."  
  
"Care to join me in the library? I still need to do the research I've been wanting to do before Professor McGonagall interrupted us," Hermione asked.  
  
"Sure, why not. I don't have anything better to do and I need to get some of my homework done before tomorrow," Harry replied. " - Oh darn, my books are upstairs and Ron's probably in there. I don't want to have to meet him when he's in a bad mood."  
  
"You're actually trying to get your work done?" Hermione teased.  
  
"Yes, its better than having to deal with Professor McGonagall or Snape when I don't do it," Harry said dryly.  
  
"I'll go up and get my textbooks so that you can use them and we can go to the library," Hermione said. "How does that sound?"  
  
"Thanks Hermione," Harry said, relieved that he wouldn't have to see Ron when he was in a bad mood.  
  
"You're welcome," she replied and went up to her dorm to get her books.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A/N: My apologies that this chapter took far too long but you get 2 chapters to make up for the time loss.  
  
Messages to people who reviewed:  
  
" ", GazzadaSpazza & Sirius B: Thank you for the review. I'm glad you all like my fic.  
  
Phoenix of Light: Hermione telling Harry what she wanted to? Hmm, she may not get the chance to do that.  
  
The Game: Yeah, I'm using a time turner, and I really don't care much for the rules.  
  
Bri Bri: Hey, I'm trying to finish this quickly. Even though I'm trying to post the chapters up once every 24 hours, the chapters are getting longer so I can't really do that each time. The story is 50% complete though.  
  
Angelis: Sorry, I can't have Harry kill stuff, though it would make things interesting. It just doesn't fit his personality. I'll leave the killing to Sepet & Walter since it's in their personality to be ruthless. If you liked the blood & guts chapter, don't worry, there's probably going to be more those  
  
Phoenix of Light & Heather: Are Sepet & Walter Death Eaters? Take a guess. This chapter may or may not help you with that one.  
  
Forever Zero: Well, true he could use the dimension door spell to get out, but he'd be the only out transported out of there. If you read the description of the spell, it only transports the caster out. 


	19. Chapter 18: Halloween Fun

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 18: Halloween Fun  
  
When Halloween came around, Harry was feeling a little better since the nightmares had gone away for a while and he managed to get some more Quidditch practice in. Hermione was still doing research for her S.P.E.W campaign it seems since she started wearing her S.P.E.W badge again and went back to bugging them about their O.W.L.s, at which Ron would always remark that they aren't until the end of the year. "Exactly why you need to start studying now," she would always reply.  
  
Professor Sepet had been gone for a while, and Harry had started getting his hopes up that Sepet had gone for good. Unfortunately for him, however, Sepet returned the week before Halloween and went back to tormenting Harry in his duelling class. They still weren't able to figure out how to get past Professor Sepet's shield and Dumbledore's request for additional aurors to be posted at the school was denied since Fudge was reluctant to send him anything that would help him. To compensate for this, Walter was able to provide some of his skeleton warriors to help with the additional security at night, which was very helpful to the staff since the undead do not require rest.  
  
That afternoon, Harry, Hermione and Ron were in the common room. They had to endure Snape in potions, where they were learning how to make a sleeping potion, but they were happy that they had the rest of the day off so that they could get ready for the Halloween feast that evening. Harry and Ron were playing a game of wizard's chess while Hermione was reading Harry's copy of 'Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them' since Neville had borrowed hers.  
  
"Checkmate," Ron said triumphantly.  
  
Harry groaned and starting to put away the pieces. "I'm getting tired of losing to you, Ron. Things are going to change soon."  
  
"I don't think you'll ever beat me in a game of Wizard's chess," Ron smirked.  
  
"Well, I'm going to go for a walk," Harry said. "I need to think."  
  
"Can I come?" Hermione asked, looking up from her book. "I have something to do also."  
  
"Sure, why not," Harry replied.  
  
Ron, not wanting to get left behind again, decided to join them as well, "Fine, I'll come too. I just hope she's not planning to go to the library."  
  
"As a matter of fact, I'm not," Hermione stated. "I'm going to the dungeons for a while."  
  
"Why the dungeons?" Ron asked curiously.  
  
"I want to check out Sepet's office. It's in the dungeons, next to Walter's office I think," she explained.  
  
"Alright, but you're not going down there alone. If Sepet decides to do something to you, you'll need us with you," Harry said, not thinking.  
  
Hermione blushed at his statement, "Thanks you two."  
  
With that, the trio made their way out of the common room and down to the dungeons. They ran into a few of Walter's skeleton warriors, each carrying a sword, along the way, but were left alone. When they got to Walter's office, they saw that he was just exiting it and they quickly tried to turn the other way, but Walter wasn't one not to notice three students in the dungeons alone.  
  
"May I do something for you three?" Walter asked as he locked the door to his office.  
  
"We were going for a walk," Hermione lied.  
  
"I'm sure you can tell me the truth Miss Granger, don't worry, I won't tell anyone what you're up to," Walter said to the surprise of Hermione and Ron. "But, I'm being a bad host. Please come into my office and maybe I can help you."  
  
So Walter unlocked his office again and he opened the door to allow them to enter. Ron made an attempt to walk in first, but Walter stopped him.  
  
"Mr. Weasley, you must show some manners to Miss Granger. Ladies always enter first," Walter said, holding him back and chuckling to himself a bit.  
  
Hermione blushed slightly, but entered first, followed by Harry and Ron with Walter entering last. Walter's office was fairly dark, except for a few lighted candles in various places around the wall. There was a desk on the far wall and a table with various bones and potions to the right of the door as they entered. A bookshelf took up the entire right wall, and a large mirror, which Harry and Hermione recognized as the mirror of Malikith was located on the left wall.  
  
Walter conjured some chairs and allowed them to sit down.  
  
"Now, what may I do for you?" Walter asked once they had sat down.  
  
"We were looking for Professor Sepet and we were wondering where he is," Hermione explained.  
  
"He's in his office down the hall," Walter said. "Shall I inform him that you will be seeing him?"  
  
"No, that's alright," Hermione said. "We'll just walk there."  
  
"Very well, but may I ask you one question Miss Granger?" questioned Walter.  
  
"What's that?" Hermione asked.  
  
"That badge you're wearing, what is it?" Walter inquired, pointing to the S.P.E.W. badge.  
  
"Oh, that's part of her attempt to free the house elves," Ron explained. "I don't think she'll ever get it done though."  
  
"Be quiet Ron, you're not helping my campaign," Hermione said, elbowing him in the stomach.  
  
"Ow - Hermione, give it up. You'll never get them to understand. They like work, don't you get it?" Ron insisted.  
  
"That's enough you two," Harry cut in, sensing that another argument was coming.  
  
"I believe I could help you on that one - Miss Granger," Walter said. "Would you be happy if the house elves got the day off, let's say, today?"  
  
"Oh, I would be so happy," said Hermione, delighted as the prospect of having the house elves not doing work for a day. "But do they get paid for their day off?"  
  
"I may not be able to do much about that, but I should be able to do something about the vacation," Walter said.  
  
"What about the Halloween feast?" Ron asked. "If the house elves get the day off, how will we get our food?"  
  
"Honestly Ron, can't you think of anything but food?" Hermione scolded.  
  
"You could do something about that right Walter?" Harry asked, knowing very well what Walter had in mind.  
  
"Yes, I could - I will see to it personally that you get your feast this evening, Mr. Weasley," Walter said with a grin.  
  
"That'd be great, if there were something that could be done but we don't have anyone who could cook up so much food for everyone, except for the house elves," Ron pointed out.  
  
"Trust me, Mr. Weasley, you will get your feast. In fact, I will see to it right now," Walter said and he got up and walked to the mirror.  
  
At the mirror, he waved his hand over it while muttering something that sounded foreign to the trio sitting in the chairs at his desk. Moments later, the mirror displayed an image of Professor Sepet who was dressed in his black quilted attire and carrying a sword, however, he wasn't wearing his hooded robe.  
  
"Yes Walter?" the image said.  
  
"My lord, I have a request to make on behalf of Miss Granger," Walter said to the mirror.  
  
"Let's hear it then," the Count replied, looking unamused.  
  
"She wishes to give the house elves a break from their work this evening and I was wondering if there was any way that they could get paid for their work," Walter said.  
  
"Very well, I shall take this up to Professor Dumbledore and see if he will pay them. If not, I will see that they are paid out of my own pocket. I do pay my servants contrary to rumours," the Count said to Hermione's delight. "Do you have arrangements for the Halloween feast this evening then?"  
  
"Yes I do my lord. Everything will be taken care of," Walter said reassuringly.  
  
"Good. Now I must return to my work and find a way to trick the house elves into going on their vacation," the Count said and the image disappeared.  
  
Hermione couldn't restrain her excitement anymore once she heard what the Count had said.  
  
"Thank you sooo much Walter," she squealed in delight.  
  
"You're welcome Miss Granger. I hope that you will be pleased with the result this evening," Walter said with a smile. "Now I must make preparations for this evening."  
  
"Of course, we'll leave you to your work," Hermione said. "Bye Walter."  
  
"Good bye Miss Granger - Mr. Potter - Mr. Weasley," Walter called back as they exited his office. "I'll see you at the feast."  
  
Once they were outside, Hermione once again squealed in delight. "I'm so happy. Finally, two people who want to free the house elves like I do and Professors no less."  
  
"I don't care, I'll just be happy when I get to eat something at the feast later," Ron commented.  
  
"Ron, all you care about is food," Harry joked.  
  
"So? It's not like you weren't jumping for joy either," Ron defended.  
  
"Well, let's head back to the common room," Harry said. "I want to grab my broom so that I can get some flying in while I can."  
  
"I'll join you," Ron added. "I haven't gone flying in ages. There's been so much work with my prefect's duties added to it."  
  
"I think I'll go to the library. I'll see you later in the common room," Hermione said, walking in the direction of the library.  
  
"Bye Hermione," Ron and Harry called after her.  
  
Harry and Ron then made their way back to the common room and ran up to get their brooms before going out to the Quidditch pitch for some practice.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Later that evening, Harry and Ron returned to the common room to find that everyone was gathered there. They found Hermione was waiting for them in a corner and Professor McGonagall was addressing everyone.  
  
"Nice of you to join us, Mr. Weasley - Mr. Potter," McGonagall said sternly.  
  
"We didn't know," they replied.  
  
"That will be enough you two. Now as I was saying, we will head over to the Great Hall now for the Halloween Feast. Professor Dumbledore has a surprised planned so we are heading there earlier than usual. No one is to be left behind, so prefects first, and then everyone will follow. I will take up the rear with Mr. Potter," McGonagall commanded. "Let's go."  
  
Ron and Hermione went out of the portrait with the two sixth year prefects followed by the other students, Harry and Professor McGonagall. Once she made sure there weren't any stragglers, the group made their way to the Great Hall, but along the way, they encountered Peeves.  
  
"Oooh, what do we have here?" Peeves screeched. "Ickle students heading to the Halloween Feast? Why don't you try one of these?"  
  
Peeves then lobbed a water balloon at a group of girls who screamed and jumped out of the way.  
  
"PEEVES!" McGonagall roared. "If you don't get out of here. I will make sure you regret it."  
  
"MAKE ME!" Peeves challenged, sticking his tongue out at McGonagall, laughing. But he wasn't laughing for long as a red ghost like apparition hit him and caused Peeves to scream in pain.  
  
"STOP IT! IT HURTS! IT BURNS!!" Peeves screeched as he flew away in pain.  
  
Everyone looked to see who it was that managed to get rid of Peeves only to see that Professor Sepet was standing behind them, one of his hands raised.  
  
"That should take care of that poltergeist for the rest of the evening. They really are a nuisance," Sepet said, lowering his hand down to his side. "I'll see all of you at the Feast."  
  
With that, Sepet walked ahead, turning a corner and the group continued walking towards the Great Hall. Looking around, Harry could see that the castle was decorated with pumpkin candles lining the corridors and spider webs were placed in several places for added effect.  
  
When they arrived at the Great Hall, Harry saw that all the professors were present, with the exception of Professor Sepet. Dumbledore was chatting merrily with Professor Flitwick and Professor McGonagall went over to join them at the teacher's table once the students had sat down. Harry sat down in between Ron and Hermione at the Gryffindor table, which the students were chattering loudly as to why they were there so early. There was also a quill and a piece of parchment in front of each person.  
  
After the students had settled down a bit, Professor Dumbledore stood up and called for their attention.  
  
"You are all probably wondering why we have brought you here earlier than usual, but I believe Professor Laikov has a little surprise for everyone - however, I will let him explain that to you," Dumbledore said and sat down again.  
  
Walter then stood up and Harry noticed that he was dressed differently this time. He was wearing black dress pants, a white dress shirt, a red tie, and a black vest with black robes over that, but he was still carrying his dagger at his side.  
  
"Earlier this afternoon," Walter began. "A student called to my attention that the house elves were being treated unfairly due to their status of servitude without pay. I must say that I agree, so today, Professor Sepet and I arranged it so that they would get the rest of the day off."  
  
The students in the hall groaned at that comment, and Malfoy stood up to object.  
  
"HOW DO YOU EXPECT US TO EAT THEN?" he yelled. "SACRIFICING OUR WELFARE JUST SO THAT YOU CAN SATISFY THE WHIM OF ONE STUDENT?"  
  
The other Slytherins along with several students from the other tables angrily murmured in agreement.  
  
"Mr. Malfoy, please allow me to finish," Walter said calmly, but his tone quickly changed to one that wasn't going to tolerate nonsense. "TAKE YOUR SEAT!"  
  
Malfoy sat down, cowering in fear at Walter's outburst and sat down, before Walter continued calmly once again.  
  
"If you look in front of you, you will notice that there is a piece of parchment and a quill in front of you. Please write down what you would like to eat this evening and it will be brought out," Walter explained.  
  
Harry now realised that Walter wasn't playing games with them earlier. He really kept his promise to Hermione, meaning that he probably wouldn't deceive him now. So he took the quill and wrote down what he wanted for the feast on the piece of parchment before looking around at everyone else.  
  
"What did you order?" Harry asked Ron and Hermione.  
  
"I ordered some roast beef and some butterbeer with some biscuits," Ron said.  
  
"I settled for roast chicken and pumpkin juice with some roast potatoes," said Hermione, finishing writing down her order, neatly. "What about you?"  
  
"I'm having a steak, roast potatoes, and butterbeer," Harry replied as Walter spoke once again.  
  
"Now that you're all finished writing down your orders. They will be taken to the kitchen so that they can be prepared," Walter said and clapped his hands twice.  
  
Nothing happened at first, but soon the students could hear the flapping of wings and screeching. It sounded like there were many winged creatures coming towards the Great Hall and some of the students starting reaching for their wands in panic. Eventually, they saw the doors to the Great Hall open and hundreds of bats came flying in.  
  
"Please don't be alarmed," Walter said reassuringly. "They will just take your orders to the kitchen."  
  
Each of the bats flew over to each piece of parchment and picked it up before flying out the door again.  
  
"Alright, now that the orders are taken care of, I will be providing some entertainment for you while you wait," Walter announced.  
  
At that moment, four skeletons entered the Great Hall. The students were still somewhat scared of them, even though they had seen them around the halls at night and in their Dark Arts class, because they weren't quite used to seeing them around yet, but Harry didn't think anything of it.  
  
The skeletons walked up to the front of the Hall and faced each other in pairs of two. The hands of each of the skeletons started glowing. Each skeleton had a different colour to the glow. The first skeleton on the left had a red glow while the one next to it had a blue glow. The two skeletons across from them had a green and orange glow to their hands.  
  
Then the red glow on the first skeleton subsided and in its place were two red fireballs. The skeleton threw them to the skeleton with the green glow, across from it and the fireball changed to a green coloured fireball once it hit the other skeleton's hands. That skeleton then threw it to the skeleton with the blue glow on its hands and the fireball changed colours once again upon hitting its hands, to blue.  
  
Finally, the first skeleton conjured up two more fireballs and threw one to the one with the orange glow and skeleton next to him. It repeated the process once again and soon there were 6 multi-coloured fireballs being thrown in the air by the four skeletons.  
  
"How's that for juggling?" Walter laughed as the students applauded the show. "How about six more?"  
  
Some of the students shouted in approval and the first skeleton conjured six more fireballs to make twelve fireballs being thrown in between the four skeletons. The entertainment was somewhat amusing to Harry, though Nearly Headless Nick, who was sitting at the end of the table, appeared to be enjoying himself.  
  
"I haven't had this much fun since my DeathDay Party," he remarked delightfully to the students next to him. Harry, Ron and Hermione had attended one DeathDay Party in their second year at Hogwarts, however, they found that it was less than pleasant, unless you were a ghost.  
  
After a while, three of the skeletons stopped throwing the fireballs to the skeleton with the blue coloured hands and that skeleton walked to the middle of the group as the fireballs continued to fly over its head. Then the skeleton fired blue bolts at each of the fireballs as it passed over its head, freezing the fireballs as they passed overhead. The other skeletons stopped catching them as the fireballs froze, and they fell to the floor, shattering into pieces before disappearing.  
  
The students applauded again and Walter dismissed the four skeletons. The four skeletons started to leave, but then they did something unexpected. One of the skeletons jumped into the air and landed on the shoulders of one of the other skeletons. The other two skeletons then followed suit and the four skeletons walked out of the Great Hall, balancing on each other's shoulders.  
  
Once again cheering and applause broke out as the skeletons left the room.  
  
"Now for final act before dinner is served, I believe Professor Sepet wanted to demonstrate his talent in transfiguration," Walter announced.  
  
The students heard the bats return again, only this time, they flew around in circles around the Great Hall for a while. The bats eventually dived, and some students screamed in fear since they thought that the bats were diving on them. However the bats flew to the front of the teacher's table and gathered. As the bats massed, the students could see them eventually form the outline of a man. The form solidified and soon, instead of a mass of bats, Professor Sepet was standing in front of the teacher's table in his usual attire. The only thing missing was his sword.  
  
Then two more bats then flew in, carrying a sheathed sword in their mouths. The bats dropped the sword as they came towards Sepet and he caught it as the two bats flew out.  
  
The students cheered and applauded at Sepet's grand entrance and Fred and George who were sitting across from Harry remarked smiling mischievously, "If nothing else, Professor Sepet sure knows how to make an entrance. We should try that one sometime. It would sure scare the hell out of some people."  
  
"I am glad that you appreciated the entertainment," Sepet said, standing in front of the teacher's table. "But I'm sure that you are all starving. So by all means, let the feast commence."  
  
Sepet then clapped his hands twice as Walter had done and to the horror of most of the students, about sixty skeletons entered the room, each carrying a tray full of food. The skeletons placed the trays at each of the tables and exited. Next, a group of about seventy imps entered the room with plates, goblets and silverware. Some of the imps were also carrying pitchers full of butterbeer and pumpkin juice. They placed a plate, goblet and the silverware in front of each of the students, while the imps with pitchers filled their goblets with drink.  
  
Once they were done, the imps walked out and Professor Sepet spoke up once again.  
  
"I hope that the skeletons didn't ruin your appetite, but I assure you the food is completely safe," he said. "Now, enjoy yourselves."  
  
Professor Sepet then walked to his seat in between a rather amused Professor McGonagall and Walter, who was pouring some pumpkin juice for an apathetic Snape. The hall broke into chatter as the students started eating, though some of the students were looking somewhat pale from having their food brought in by skeletons. Among them were Ron and Hermione, though Harry was unaffected by the experience since he had seen the same thing at the Count's castle during the summer.  
  
"How can you manage to eat this?" Ron asked Harry, who was eating his food normally. "It might be poisoned or something."  
  
"I'm surprised Ron, normally you're the one who doesn't hesitate to taste any food," Harry teased. "Back at the Count's castle, his servants served the food in the same manner, so I'm not bothered by the fact that I have undead creatures serving my meal."  
  
"I don't think I'll ever get used to it," Hermione remarked, looking disgustedly at her food.  
  
"Come now Hermione. You're the one who asked that the house elves get the rest of the day off, so stop complaining and eat. If no one else is dropping dead, then you won't either," Harry pointed out.  
  
"I guess you're right," Hermione said, cautiously taking a bit out of some of the roast potatoes.  
  
"Hey, you're right this isn't too bad," Hermione finally agreed.  
  
"I told you," said Harry triumphantly. "What do you think Ron?"  
  
"The food still tastes as good as the food the house elves make," Ron said with his mouth full. "Maybe Hermione will finally get her way, now that we have some replacement cooks, though I wonder if everyone else would appreciate skeletons serving up their meals."  
  
The rest of the Halloween feast continued normally and everyone was in good spirits. Fred and George slipped some ageing potion into Alicia's drink causing her to grow slightly older. The twins had a good laugh at that, until Alicia decided to chase them out of the Great Hall.  
  
"I'LL GET YOU FOR THIS WEASLEY!" Alicia screamed, running after them while some of the students laughed.  
  
To Harry, it seemed that everyone was in good spirits, even Walter had decided to play a prank on Snape, to the amusement of some of the staff members. Walter had added some confusion potion to Snape's goblet when he poured it at the beginning of the feast so that when Snape got up to talk to Professor Dumbledore about some business, he immediately stumbled on his own chair. The loud noise that accompanied it caused all the students in the Hall to look at him.  
  
"WHAT ARE YOU ALL LOOKING AT?" Snape yelled in anger.  
  
Walter was laughing merrily, while the other professors were trying their best to hold in their laughter, including Sepet who was smirking at Snape's misfortune. The students however, couldn't hold it in and so they burst out laughing and Snape ended up storming out of the Hall in disgust, but not before he had tripped over another two stools and slammed into the wall.  
  
The students were still laughing for a while after Snape left, but soon the laughter died down as Professor Sepet got up all of a sudden and walked out of the hall.  
  
"Harry," Hermione said. "Why is Sepet leaving before everyone else?"  
  
"I don't know," Harry said, "maybe he's just tired."  
  
"Let's go follow him," Hermione suggested and Harry nudged Ron.  
  
"Ron - we're leaving," Harry said with a tone of urgency.  
  
"What's this about? I was starting to enjoy the evening," Ron said, reluctantly getting up.  
  
"Sepet just left - we're going to see what he's up to," Harry explained quickly as the trio left the hall to chase after Sepet. However, Lee Jordan questioned them as to where they were going before they could go anywhere.  
  
"Where are you three going?" Lee asked.  
  
"We're just heading back to the common room. We're tired already," Hermione lied.  
  
"Oh, in that case, good night," Lee said.  
  
"Good night Lee," they all echoed and they quickly made their way out of the Great Hall.  
  
"Where could they be?" Harry said thoughtfully.  
  
"Oh, he could be anywhere," said Hermione with a tone of desperation as they ran through the halls looking for Sepet.  
  
"We only need to find Sepet in order to stop him from doing something horrible," Harry pointed out.  
  
"What about his shield?" Ron asked.  
  
"Don't worry, we'll find a way to stop him. He's not completely invulnerable," said Harry encouragingly.  
  
"Whatever you say H-" Ron was about to say when they heard a bloodcurdling scream nearby causing them to run quickly in the direction of the scream.  
  
When they got there, they saw Alicia lying on the floor, barely alive with blood oozing out from what looked like a cut in her neck. The ageing potion that Fred and George put in her potion also appeared to have worn off since she was back to normal, though the effects of such a potion should have lasted for a couple hours.  
  
"What do we do?" Ron asked in shock as Alicia's blood continued to spread on the floor. "We're too late."  
  
"Stop panicking," Harry said, snapping Ron out of his shocked state. "We need to stop the bleeding first. We'll take care of Sepet later."  
  
"Here, let me try," Hermione said and she tore part of her robe so that she could wrap it around the cut in Alicia's neck. "We need to apply pressure to the wound so that the bleeding will stop. She's fortunate to be alive after such a deep cut."  
  
"Don't bother wrapping that around her neck Miss Granger," said a voice from behind them. "You'll only kill her that way."  
  
They turned around and saw that Walter, Professor Dumbledore, McGonagall and several students were behind them.  
  
"Why not? We need to stop the bleeding," Hermione insisted.  
  
"Very well," Walter said, walking towards them as Professor McGonagall ordered the students to head back to their dorms, which they did reluctantly. "Let me help you with dressing her wound."  
  
Walter got down next to Hermione and reached for the piece of her robe in her hand, but when Hermione offered it to him, Walter quickly snatched her dagger from its sheath at her waist and thrust it into Alicia's neck, causing more blood to flow onto the floor.  
  
"YOU MURDERER!" Hermione screamed, lunging at Walter in an attempt to get him away from Alicia's body. "YOU KILLED HER!"  
  
"No Miss Granger," Walter said calmly, while Harry and Ron watched frozen in shock. "I just saved her."  
  
Walter had pushed Hermione away from him and was now restraining her. Hot tears fell down her cheek as she continued to struggle in Walter's grasp.  
  
"Minerva," Dumbledore finally said. "Please take these three back to their tower. I will take care of this."  
  
"As you wish Albus," McGonagall replied and she quickly ushered Harry, Ron, and a defeated Hermione back to the common room, leaving Dumbledore behind with Walter.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they got back to the common room, Hermione immediately ran up to her dorm while Ron and Harry sat in stunned silence in the armchairs by the fire. The other students in the common room were looking at them strangely, but they said nothing as they too were shocked by what had happened to Alicia. Fred and George were sitting on the floor with guilty looks on their faces and Katie Bell was making an attempt to comfort them. This Halloween was starting to turn sour for the Gryffindors as they mourned for their loss.  
  
A/N: What'd you think? This chapter was more for fun rather than advancing the story, until the end that is. 


	20. Chapter 19: Strange Visits

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling.  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 19: Strange Visits  
  
The day after the attack on Alicia, the Gryffindors were still at a loss as to what really happened the night before. Rumours were going around the school, about the night before. They ranged mostly from Alicia being dead to dark creatures inside the school wanting to feed on students. The Slytherins weren't helping the Gryffindor situation either, as they had the nerve to taunt them about it causing several fights to break out at breakfast between the two houses. As a result, both houses lost at least 100 points, putting the Slytherins in 3rd and the Gryffindors in 4th place for the house cup.  
  
Since no one had heard any word about Alicia; Madam Pomfrey wouldn't let them anywhere near the Hospital Wing unless it was a life or death situation, the Gryffindors could only guess how she was doing. Fred and George were still feeling guilty about having played the prank on her the night before, saying that if they didn't put the ageing potion in her drink, she would be sitting with them laughing at their jokes.  
  
"We can't take this anymore," Fred and George sulked at the table during lunch. "We shouldn't have played such a prank on her."  
  
"Oh lighten up you two," Katie Bell said, trying to cheer them up a bit. "It's not your fault. You only were trying to have a bit of fun and lift everyone's spirits."  
  
"Well, that fun may have just cost us our Quidditch Captain," they snapped before returning to brooding over their loss.  
  
Hermione, who was sitting a bit farther down the table with Harry and Ron, was quietly listening to their conversation. She was fuming in anger at the fact that she could have done something to save Alicia.  
  
*If only Walter hadn't plunged that knife into her neck, she would still be alive, * Hermione thought to herself. *I HATE HIM! I'll never forgive him for killing her. *  
  
"Hermione?" said a voice next to her, snapping her out of her thoughts. She looked next to her and saw that it was Harry trying to get her attention.  
  
"WHAT?" she snapped, without thinking before she realised who it was.  
  
"Calm down. I was only trying to ask you if you're alright," Harry said. He had a worried look on his face and he was clearly concerned about his best friend. "You looked deep in thought, so I was wondering if anything was wrong."  
  
"Sorry," she replied apologetically. "I'm just still in a fuss over last night. I'm still enraged about Walter. Why did he have to go and kill Alicia when we could have saved her? I should have been more careful around him, then he wouldn't have gotten at my dagger."  
  
"Come now, we don't even know if Alicia is alive. For all we know, she could be in the Hospital Wing alive and well," Harry pointed out, making her sudden outburst seem very illogical. "I don't know why Walter did what he did, but I'm sure he's got a good reason to do that."  
  
"Stabbing a student with a dagger?" she said hotly. "You have got to be insane to want to do that when she's bleeding all over the floor."  
  
"Perhaps, but Walter has helped us throughout the time we've been here. He's even made sure that the house elves got their vacation for you," Harry argued. "I doubt that he'd do anything without a reason. - Though I wish I could say the same about Sepet."  
  
"Yes, Sepet has been acting rather strangely," Hermione agreed, starting to calm down a bit. "I wonder if he had anything to do with those dead Death Eaters in the tower. - Say Ron, do you remember anything about what you saw in the tower?"  
  
"Huh?" Ron said, giving Hermione a quizzical look. He had been watching Fred and George sitting further down the table, thinking of a way to help cheer up his two brothers.  
  
"I said, do you remember anything you saw in the tower when those Death Eaters were killed?" Hermione repeated.  
  
"Oh, let's see. I remember that the hooded guy was very careful not to show his face. The people chained against the wall, I don't know if they were Death Eaters or not, but the sword had a silver blade."  
  
"Ron," Hermione said, sounding unimpressed, "all the blades are silver, that doesn't help us."  
  
"Sorry," said Ron, giving her a sheepish look. "I noticed that he was carrying it with one hand but I didn't notice anything else."  
  
"Anyone can carry a sword with one hand," Harry said. "Even me, and that leave us at another dead end."  
  
"UGH, I have a feeling Sepet is behind this, but we have no proof," Hermione said, irritably. "And Walter is probably helping him."  
  
"Well, we'll just have to keep an eye on both of them," Harry said. "You could be right about Walter, though I still don't think that he would have stabbed Alicia in the neck without good reason, especially in front of Dumbledore."  
  
"Harry's right Hermione. I don't think Walter would have done so without a good reason. I mean he's pretty nice even though he can be scary at times," Ron chimed in, though he was somewhat distracted by Fred and George feeling sorry for themselves. " - Hey, why don't we all go and see if she's alright. The entire Gryffindor team can come. Maybe it'll cheer Fred and George up."  
  
"That has got to be the smartest thing you've said all year Ron," Hermione said sarcastically.  
  
Ron gave her a confused look. "What do you mean?"  
  
"Nevermind Ron. Let's go to see if Alicia's alright," Harry said, getting up. "- HEY FRED AND GEORGE."  
  
"WHAT?" they yelled in unison causing quite a few students to look at them.  
  
"Gather the team up, we're going to pay our captain a visit," Harry explained. "Ron, Hermione, and I will meet you at the Hospital Wing."  
  
The Weasley twins jumped up at this suggestion. "Sure thing Harry."  
  
The twins then went around the table with Katie and started to gather the team up, including Ginny, who was sitting with Seamus and Dean while Harry, Ron and Hermione headed out of the Great Hall.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When the trio arrived at the Hospital Wing, they saw that Madam Pomfrey was just coming out of her office. She spotted them and quickly made their way towards them.  
  
"What do you want?" she questioned, eyeing them suspiciously.  
  
"We were just wondering if Alicia is here," Harry explained, "and if she's doing alright."  
  
"Oh, she's lost a lot of blood but she's doing just fine," Madam Pomfrey said. "She had a nasty bite to her neck it seems. Poisoned her. Professor Laikov brought her in here after she was bitten. It appeared that he had stabbed her in the neck with some sharp object."  
  
"My dagger," Hermione whispered, her hand absentmindedly going to the empty sheath at her waist.  
  
"Really? Why would you be carrying a dagger around?" Madam Pomfrey asked.  
  
"It's for our duelling class. Professor Sepet gave them to us," Hermione replied.  
  
"Well, you really shouldn't be carrying such weapons around," Madam Pomfrey scolded, however her face expression softened a little afterwards. "But if it weren't for that, I don't think that poor girl would be alive. We had to replace most of her blood since the poison had spread throughout her body. The knife wound that Professor Laikov inflicted on her had actually slowed the progress. If anyone had dressed the wound, the poison would have stayed in her body and killed her."  
  
Hermione looked surprised at Madam Pomfrey's explanation and realised that Walter had told her the truth the night before. "And all this time, I thought Walter had killed her."  
  
"Can we see her?" Harry asked. "I believe the rest of the Quidditch team will be here soon."  
  
As if on cue, Fred, George, Ginny and Katie came in with the rest of the Gryffindor Quidditch team. Katie was the first to say something.  
  
"Hi Harry, is she alive?" Katie Bell asked worriedly.  
  
"Yes, she's doing fine," Harry replied, giving her a small smile.  
  
Madam Pomfrey, seeing the entire team present for their injured captain, was touched by their loyalty. "Alright, you can go see her, but don't disturb the poor dear. She's still resting from the operation this morning."  
  
*So that's why no one was let near here. * Harry thought to himself, but walked over to Alicia's bed nevertheless with the rest of the Gryffindor team.  
  
Alicia's neck was bandaged heavily and if it weren't for the fact that her chest was moving up and down with her breathing, Harry might have thought that she was dead.  
  
Fred and George were the first ones to go up to Alicia's bed. George took her hand in his and quietly spoke.  
  
"We're sorry Alicia," George said softly. "We won't ever play a joke on you again. It was our fault that you were attacked and we should have been there to - "  
  
"Protect you," Fred finished. "We'll never play another joke again and we'll give up our idea of the joke shop because our fun has almost cost us one of our friends and we don't want to think of what would happen if we did lose you."  
  
Alicia let out a small cough when the twins had finished speaking and the rest of the team looked at her expectantly. Her eyes opened slowly and she looked around, however, she wasn't able to turn her head since her neck was so heavily wrapped in bandages.  
  
"I thought I heard Fred and George," Alicia wheezed.  
  
"You did," Harry replied before anyone else could. "They were just talking before you woke up."  
  
"Hi Harry, Fred and George," she said looking up at the ceiling. "Where is everyone and what happened?"  
  
"The entire team is here along with Hermione," Harry said calmly. "As for what happened, we're still trying to figure that out. We were the first to get to you."  
  
"I'm glad you guys decided to see me," Alicia said and they could see that she was smiling, despite her weakened state. "But I need to get out of here. Quidditch practices need to continue and we must win the Quidditch Cup this year since it'll be the last year that the majority of the original team will be playing, minus Oliver and Angelina of course."  
  
"We will continue the Quidditch practices, but in your state, I doubt you'll be able to do much," Harry pointed out.  
  
"Alright, then I elect you as the replacement captain," Alicia decided. "Continue the Quidditch practices in my absence and when I'm well enough I'll join you, we must beat those Slytherins again."  
  
Harry was taken by surprise by her statement, but when he looked around, the entire team was looking at him with approval. "If no one objects, then alright, I'll accept the position. I don't know if I can pull this off the way you would though."  
  
"Harry, don't do the job the way I do it. Do the job the way you think it should be done," Alicia countered. "I'm sure that you'll make a great captain next year."  
  
"So you already had me in mind for the captain next year?" Harry asked.  
  
"Yes we did," Fred and George replied with a grin and Alicia nodded faintly from her bed. "We thought you were the best candidate for captain next year, so you might as well start now."  
  
"We should go before Madam Pomfrey comes back," Hermione finally said. "We don't need to be kicked out of here."  
  
"Always the same Hermione telling everyone what to do," Alicia said smiling weakly.  
  
Everyone turned to leave, but as Fred and George made to leave, Alicia called them back.  
  
"One more thing Fred and George," she said with a mischievous grin on her face. "- if you ever give up on that idea of that joke shop on your just because I almost got killed, I'll be sure to hex you both so that you'll end up in here for months after we've graduated. As much as I didn't like that joke you played on me, I do appreciate the fact that you bother to play jokes at all. It makes for a not so dull life."  
  
"Thanks Alicia," Fred and George replied in unison. "We're glad that you forgave us for what we did and we're sorry for that."  
  
"You should be," she teased. "I still owe you the beating though."  
  
Harry laughed to himself at this before he left the hospital wing with the Gryffindor team.  
  
"Congratulations Harry," Seamus called as he went off towards the Gryffindor tower with Dean and Ginny while the rest of the team dispersed in different directions.  
  
Harry waved a thank you at them before Ron decided to congratulate him as well.  
  
"Congratulations mate," Ron said, patting him on the back. "I'm sure you'll be a great captain and we can give those Slytherins the beating they deserve."  
  
"Ron's right Harry," Hermione agreed, smiling warmly at him. "You'll make a great captain next year."  
  
Harry smiled back at her. It was times like this that he was glad that she was his friend, however, the fact that Ron liked her as well posed a dilemma for him.  
  
"Thanks you two," Harry said. " - Now what would you like to do?"  
  
"I want to go down to the dungeons to visit Walter," Hermione suggested nervously.  
  
"Why would you want to visit him?" Ron asked giving her a quizzical look.  
  
"I want to apologize for what I said to him yesterday," Hermione said, sounding a bit embarrassed. "I didn't allow him to explain why he had used my dagger on her, but now that I know that Alicia is doing alright because of that, my outburst sounds so stupid now."  
  
"I don't think it was stupid," Harry said reassuringly. "I mean if I wasn't so shocked, I'm pretty sure I'd have attacked him for doing such a thing."  
  
"Thanks for cheering me up Harry," Hermione said smiling warmly at him again and the trio made their way down to Walter's office once again, but as they turned the corner to get to the stairs, they ran into none other than Malfoy and his two goons, only this time he also had Pansy Parkinson clinging to him.  
  
"Watch where you're going," Malfoy snarled as they all fell to the ground.  
  
"Why don't you watch where you're going Malfoy," Ron returned angrily, getting up.  
  
"Well, well, if it isn't Potter, Weasel and his mudblood girlfriend," Malfoy sneered while Pansy, Crabbe and Goyle snickered behind him.  
  
"Get lost Malfoy," Harry threatened, making ready to draw his wand as he got off the floor.  
  
"Make us," Pansy replied for Malfoy. "We're not going anywhere, right Draco dear?"  
  
"That's right," Malfoy agreed. "You ran into us, you apologize first, and then we'll leave."  
  
"Apologize to you? NEVER!" Ron said hotly and was going to attack Malfoy with his fists, but Harry and Hermione held him back.  
  
"That's great Weasel," Malfoy said, sounding condescending. "You know, I hear that your great captain was badly hurt last night. I told you before and I'll tell you again Mudblood lovers and mud - BAA."  
  
Ron was surprised at what Malfoy had just said but when he looked to Harry and Hermione, he saw that they both had their wands drawn and pointed at Malfoy and Pansy. When he looked back to where Malfoy was, he saw two sheep standing where Malfoy and Pansy were previously while Crabbe and Goyle looked too scared to do anything.  
  
Ron, looking at the two sheep baaing and a nervous Crabbe and Goyle standing next to them, he couldn't help but burst out laughing.  
  
Harry and Hermione looked at Ron with confused looks but they burst out laughing as well soon enough, however they made sure to keep their wands pointed at Crabbe and Goyle.  
  
"BLOODY BRILLIANT!" Ron exclaimed while falling to the floor in laughter. "Where did you two learn to do that? I must say that Malfoy looks great as a sheep."  
  
"We learned it from a book we found in the library," Hermione lied hoping that it would cover the fact that they were using elemental magic.  
  
"You've got to show me that one sometime," Ron said, now calming down since he was hurting from laughing too much.  
  
"Maybe if you would start reading more books," Hermione said as Harry helped her up, "you'd know some of these curses."  
  
"I agree with Miss Granger, you really should start reading more books Mr. Weasley," said a voice from behind them causing Harry, Ron and Hermione to jump in surprise. They turned around to see that it was Walter, wearing his plate armour again, coming towards them with a large grin on his face and his hands behind his back.  
  
"That was very entertaining you two," Walter said, laughing a bit. "Mr. Malfoy and Miss Parkinson do look good as sheep, don't you think?"  
  
Harry grinned and quickly put away his wand. "Yes, they do. Mad-Eye Moody turned Malfoy into a ferret last year and bounced him up and down."  
  
Hermione followed suit, but she looked more nervous around Walter than Ron or Harry. Crabbe and Goyle, seeing that the trio was distracted by Walter, they quickly picked up the two sheep and ran away as fast as their fat legs could carry them, much to everyone's amusement.  
  
"Ah yes, I heard about that one from Professor McGonagall. Most entertaining indeed," said Walter with a smile before looking at Hermione. " - Miss Granger, is something wrong? You look a bit nervous."  
  
"Uh," Hermione began. "I just wanted to apologize to you for my outburst last night. We just went by the hospital wing and Madam Pomfrey told us that Alicia was poisoned and that you had plunged my dagger into her neck so that the poison would get out of her system."  
  
"No apology is necessary Miss Granger. If anyone must apologize it should be me for having tricked you to get at your weapon," Walter said, bowing slightly in apology. "I don't blame you for your actions and it is perfectly understandable that you would be concerned for your classmate's wellbeing."  
  
"So you weren't lying last night," Ron spoke up in amazement. "I thought you had killed her as well."  
  
"No, I didn't kill her. She wasn't close to death so there was no need to, but a few more minutes, and I probably wouldn't have had much of a choice," Walter explained. " - I did come to return Miss Granger's dagger however."  
  
Walter quickly brought out his right hand with Hermione's dagger, hilt facing towards her, and offered it to her. Hermione could see that it was cleaned completely of all the blood and she reached out to take the dagger and put it back in her empty sheath.  
  
"Thank you Walter," Hermione said gratefully.  
  
"You're welcome," he replied. "I also wanted to inform you and Mr. Potter that your presence will be required in the headmaster's office this evening after dinner. I believe he wanted to discuss something with you both about your classes."  
  
"What about me?" Ron asked jealously. "How come they've been going to see Dumbledore so often?"  
  
"Mr. Weasley, they and six other students are taking a duelling class with Professor Sepet on their own. The headmaster just wishes to ensure that everything runs smoothly in class, considering that there are weapons other than wands involved," Walter explained.  
  
"Oh, so that's why the meetings take so long?"  
  
"Yes Mr. Weasley, everyone must be allowed to voice their concerns," Walter said. " - Well, I must be going now. I have some business to take care of before the meeting tonight and I won't take any points off from Gryffindor for playing that very entertaining joke on Mr. Malfoy and Miss Parkinson. - Good day Miss Granger - Mr. Potter - Mr. Weasley."  
  
"Bye Walter and thank you," Harry and Hermione called as Walter made his way towards the dungeons.  
  
"What does he mean by having some business to take care of?" Ron asked with a quizzical look.  
  
"I don't know," Hermione replied. "Let's go back to the tower; I want to get some of my homework done before tonight."  
  
"Oh come now Hermione," Ron whined. "The weekend has only started."  
  
"Exactly why I need to get my work done," Hermione stated.  
  
Ron rolled his eyes, but he nevertheless went on with Harry and Hermione as they headed to the tower.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Later that evening after dinner, Harry and Hermione said good bye to Ron and made their way over to Dumbledore's office. When they arrived, were surprised to find Sirius waiting outside, in his human form.  
  
"Sirius," Harry said through clenched teeth, "What are you doing? You can't be seen remember?"  
  
"Oh relax, everyone's heading back to their dorms, no one's going to be passing through here. Dumbledore made sure of it," Sirius assured him.  
  
"Alright, let's just get up there," Harry said. "What's the password?"  
  
"Treacle Tart," Sirius said and the stone gargoyle hopped aside so that they could enter.  
  
As they made their way up, Sirius questioned them how everything was going.  
  
"Everything is alright, though Professor Sepet has been acting strange and one of the students was attacked yesterday," Hermione explained.  
  
"Any idea who did it?" Sirius inquired.  
  
"Well, I suppose Professor Sepet could have done it since he was the first professor to leave at the Halloween feast," said Hermione thoughtfully.  
  
"Hey Sirius, when are you going to teach Hermione how to become an animagus like both of us?" Harry interrupted.  
  
Sirius shrugged his shoulders. "I've been having to keep Remus company in the shrieking shack since the full moon was up. Though did you fix it up since the last time we've been there? The place looks almost brand new."  
  
Harry gave Sirius a small smile. "Yes I fixed it up with Hermione's help. We wanted to make sure that you liked it the next time you came there. I mean the place was a mess so we thought we'd surprise you."  
  
"Thanks you two," Sirius said beaming at them. " - How about I teach Hermione how to be an animagus after this meeting? We can sneak into the Shrieking Shack or use an old classroom. You can come too Harry since I want to see how much progress you've made."  
  
Hermione let out a small squeal of delight. "Thank you Sirius. Finally I can find out what animagus form I can become."  
  
They entered Dumbledore's office and saw that almost everyone was there, except for Malfoy and Sepet. Sirius took his seat next to Remus while Hermione and Harry sat in their usual seats by the fireplace. Soon Malfoy entered, apparently back to normal. He glared at Harry and Hermione, who smirked at him, and took a seat.  
  
Dumbledore then stood up to speak. "Due to the incidents last night, we will have to take further precautions to ensure that the students are no longer attacked. Does anyone have any suggestions on how we should go about this?"  
  
Sirius was the first to speak. "Remus and I could patrol the halls at night. No students should be around, but I will still be in the form of a dog, just in case."  
  
"And I can provide some of my undead soldiers to patrol the halls at all times. They do not require any sleep and can patrol anywhere within this castle," Walter added.  
  
"Very well Sirius and Professor Laikov," Dumbledore said. "That should take care of most things. Alastor, Miss Figg and Mundungus Fletcher, would you three also be willing to assist them in keeping our halls safe at night?"  
  
The three of them nodded affirmatively and Professor Sepet entered the room, followed by two men. The first, Harry and Hermione recognised as Professor Karkaroff, the headmaster of Drurstang, but they were even more surprised to see who the second person was; Viktor Krum. Krum, seeing Hermione in the room, smiled at her, much to Harry's chagrin, but he was pleased when Hermione smiled back rather weakly.  
  
"Good Evening Headmaster," the Count said, unenthusiastically. "I found the two people you asked me to look for earlier last month. They've been staying here for several days now, but no one is aware that they are staying here. I also believe that Mr. Karkaroff would like to have a few words with everyone."  
  
The Count took his seat next to Walter and Dumbledore stood up to acknowledge Karkaroff's presence. "Welcome Professor Karkaroff - Mr. Krum. I believe you've been to Hogwarts before. What can we do for you?"  
  
"Please dispense with the pleasantries Albus. My student and I would like to request asylum and your assurance that no harm will come to us. He- Who- Must-Not-Be-Named has send Death Eaters after us," Karkaroff said rather quickly that it was clear that he was in a state of panic.  
  
"Calm down Professor," Dumbledore said, conjuring two seats in the middle of the room. "Please have a seat and tell us all about it."  
  
Karkaroff and Krum looked tense since their seats were in the middle of the room, but they sat down nevertheless.  
  
"Professor Dumbledore, if you please," Krum began. "My headmaster, as you know, vos a former Death Eater and servant of You-Know-Who. Since he wants him dead, I believe it is my responsibility to see that no harm comes to him."  
  
"Are they after you too Mr. Krum?" someone questioned and when they looked to see who it was, they saw it was Walter. "Forgive me for being paranoid, but it is my duty to question all new visitors."  
  
"You'll have to forgive my student, he is just overprotective of me Professor - I don't believe I caught your name," Karkaroff answered.  
  
"Laikov, Walter Laikov - Mr. Karkaroff," Walter said unemotionally. "You still haven't answered my question, Mr. Krum," said Walter, giving Krum a thoughtful look.  
  
As Walter kept pressing the question, Harry could see why Walter was indeed excellent at interrogations.  
  
"No, they are not, but it is entire possible that they vill come after me as well," Krum finally broke under the intense stare he was receiving from Walter.  
  
After observing the exchange between Walter and Krum, the Count finally decided to speak. He had an evil glint in his eye that looked like he was expecting something. "Since we haven't heard a good reason to grant you asylum Professor Karkaroff, I don't think that we should give you our protection. We are already short-handed and you will understand if we are unable to protect you and Mr. Krum."  
  
"I assure you headmaster," Karkaroff pleaded to Dumbledore after the Count's statement. "I have information that could be useful to you."  
  
Dumbledore considered the statement a while before nodding. "Very well, then let us hear what you have for us."  
  
"I heard that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is planning on freeing his followers from Azkaban," Karkaroff said shakily.  
  
"Old news Karkaroff," Snape said dryly. "I don't suppose you know when he'd actually try that, would you?"  
  
"Unfortunately no," Karkaroff said disappointedly. "I don't know when he plans to do that."  
  
"I didn't think so," said Snape with a triumphant sneer on his face. "Because you let it be known that you had no intention of coming back to him, naturally he wants you dead. - According to my sources, he wishes to free them two weeks from today."  
  
"If ve offered our services to your order, Professor, vould that suffice?" Krum asked.  
  
Dumbledore smiled at the offer. "Yes it would Mr. Krum. In fact, that will be the next order of business."  
  
"Since Fudge insists on the Dementors guarding Azkaban, when Voldemort (everyone flinches but Walter, Sepet and Harry) comes and frees them, we can expect the Dementors to join them. Therefore it will be safe to assume that they will turn against us once his Death Eaters arrive," Dumbledore continued. "Therefore, if we are to do anything, we will need everyone to participate in this defence."  
  
"I will be sure to assist in their training against them," the Count added.  
  
"Thank you both. - I believe that is all for tonight. You are all dismissed. Professor Laikov will show you to your rooms, Mr. Karkaroff and Mr. Krum," Dumbledore said.  
  
Harry and Hermione got up and made to leave, but when they got to the door, they allowed everyone else to pass so they could wait for Sirius.  
  
"Good Night Harry," Cho said as she passed him.  
  
"Night Cho," Harry returned while Hermione scowled, but Harry didn't notice since the room was too dark.  
  
Krum also passed them a few moments later and he said 'good night' to Hermione and Harry inwardly cringed, but he didn't show any emotion at Krum's attempt to flirt with Hermione. However Sirius eventually got to them and no one bothered the two anymore.  
  
"Ready to go you two?" Sirius asked, coming up to them with Remus.  
  
"Yup," they replied and enthusiastically followed him out the door.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Sirius and Remus led Harry and Hermione down corridors and up stairways until they came to a wooden door.  
  
"Here we are," Sirius announced and he said a password (Padfoot), which unlocked the door, and Sirius opened the door so that they could enter.  
  
They found that the room had green rugs on the floor and was furnished a lot like the Gryffindor common room, though there were many scarlet and gold tapestries hanging from the walls. Two armchairs were placed by the fireplace and two doors off to the left probably led to their rooms.  
  
Remus sat in one of the chairs while Sirius, Harry and Hermione stood in the middle of the room.  
  
"Alright, first let's start with Hermione since she's been wanting to learn what her form is," Sirius said, walking in front of her. "First take out your wand and hold it in front of you, then say 'Fateor formalis.' That will reveal what your animagus form will be."  
  
Hermione then took out her wand and followed exactly as Sirius instructed and soon enough, mist shot out of her wand before forming a small bird that looked like a dove.  
  
"Hmm, interesting," Sirius commented. "A dove. I haven't seen one of those before, though I suppose everyone is unique in their own way."  
  
Hermione smiled happily that she was capable of becoming an animagus. "So how do I transform?"  
  
"Well, as I've told Harry, for the first couple times, you'll need your wand but once you get used to it you should be able to transform just by thinking of your form," Sirius answered, "just concentrate on your form and say 'mutatio dove' to transform."  
  
Hermione did as she was told and she could feel her hands changing into feathers, but other than that, she still felt the same.  
  
"How did I do?" she asked expectantly.  
  
"Not bad for the first time. Better than me the first time I tried it," Sirius beamed.  
  
Hermione was pleased with herself but she was quite curious as to what Harry could do. "What about Harry? I want to see him transform."  
  
"You up for it Harry?" Sirius asked.  
  
Harry nodded and concentrated on his phoenix form. He felt his skin change into feathers and his mouth change into a beak. His hair changed to red feathers and lengthened so that the feathers fell to the bottom of his fairly long neck. Hermione watched in awe and delight as she saw him change, but didn't say anything as soon enough, she was staring not at Harry, but an average sized phoenix.  
  
"Amazing Harry," she finally said. "I didn't think you would actually pull this off."  
  
"I agree, well done Harry," Remus added in amusement while Sirius was just standing there with his mouth hanging open.  
  
The phoenix then changed back and Harry said a cheerful 'Thank you' to Hermione and Remus.  
  
"You can close your mouth now Sirius," Remus said, laughing at the state Sirius was in. "You don't need to drool all over the place when you're human. Unless of course you've been a dog for too long that you can't help it."  
  
That comment snapped Sirius out of his dumbfounded look and he took out his wand to try to hex Remus, but he was faster and was already out of the chair by the time the spell reached the place where he was previously. The chair was turned into a poodle, which began to run around the room. Remus by then had his wand out and fired something at Sirius, but since Sirius wasn't fast enough, the spell hit him and his hair turned orange and he was wearing a pink dress.  
  
Harry and Hermione laughed at the ridiculousness of Sirius' appearance and Sirius dropped his wand to get his hands around Remus, but he tripped on the hem of his dress and fell flat on his face.  
  
Everyone burst out laughing again and Remus went over to Sirius and changed his clothes back to normal before helping him up off the floor. Sirius then picked up his wand and quickly turned around to fire another hex at Remus. This time Remus wasn't prepared and he found his shoes changed into a pair of high heels, which made him lose his balance and fall over sideways.  
  
Harry and Hermione were rolling on the floor with laughter by then at the sight of the two men fighting each other.  
  
"Good - One - Sirius," Harry said in between laughs.  
  
"No hard feelings Remus?" Sirius asked, offering his hand to help Remus up after transfiguring his shoes back to normal.  
  
"None Sirius," Remus said with a mischievous grin and got up off the floor.  
  
"Well, I think we've had enough fun for tonight," Hermione interrupted before anything else could happen. "I'm off to bed."  
  
"Alright Hermione, I'll come with you in a moment. I just want to say good bye to Sirius and Professor Lupin."  
  
Hermione and Harry went over to give Sirius and Remus a hug before saying good night, which they happily returned before the two walked out the door back to the Gryffindor tower.  
  
"That was fun, don't you think Hermione?" Harry said, smiling to himself.  
  
"Yes it was," Hermione agreed. "But really, we're up past our bedtime again."  
  
Harry rolled his eyes. "Still can't stand to break the rules and have a little fun now and then?"  
  
"I'm a prefect, I have to uphold the school rules, but you're right; breaking the rules every now and then is fun," she said smiling at him.  
  
"You're actually agreeing with me over breaking the school rules?" Harry asked mockingly, which was returned by a playful punch to his arm from Hermione. "Though I did notice that you're getting better with the elemental magic - Level 4 right?"  
  
"Yes, I can do level 4 spells now," Hermione stated.  
  
"I must say, Malfoy and Pansy look very good as sheep," Harry commented with a mischievous glint in his eye.  
  
Hermione laughed at this and they continued happily onward to the tower.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Eventually they arrived at the portrait of the Fat Lady, who was asleep. They woke her up and she made a fuss over why they were out so late. Not wanting to bother to explain themselves, they said the password (Cockatrice) impatiently and the portrait swung side.  
  
They entered a completely empty common room and Harry made his way towards the boys' dormitories.  
  
"Good night Hermione," Harry waved as he started walking up the stairs.  
  
Hermione smiled warmly at him and ran over to give him a quick hug before going up to her room. Harry could feel his cheeks turn red and he was glad that she was gone since he was afraid that she would notice.  
  
*She's made my life worth living, * Harry thought happily to himself as he continued his way up to his room.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~ A/N: This one took a bit longer than usual to post, but I was trying to figure out how to incorporate everyone's suggestions into this chapter. I don't know if you're satisfied w/ Hermione's animagus form, but I decided on that one after someone mentioned a unicorn, which is white and another mentioned a hawk which is a bird, so I was thinking white bird. Then I happened to be watching some movie clips from Final Fantasy 8. The main female character, Rinoa can change into an angel so the closest thing I could think of was a dove. There are also other reasons why I chose that, but you'll have to keep reading to find out. Finally, I don't know what to do w/ Krum, so I'll leave it up to you guys. I can either kill him, get rid of him, or keep him, which would you prefer? Plz tell me.  
  
Jarvey: Congratulations, I was wondering when someone would get it. Yes, Sepet's name inverted is Tepes so that makes him Vlad Tepes, aka Vlad the Impaler (Tepes means Impaler if I'm not mistaken), or better known as Count Dracula. His castle, Bran castle in chapter 6, is also the name of Vald Tepes' castle in Romania, though the layout of the castle is different. The main entrance is actually a stairway, not a long bridge.  
  
BloodRedSword: I didn't forget the elemental magic, just that there wasn't any relevant place to put it in those chapters. I used the polymorph spell on Draco though. Don't worry, there will be more elemental magic coming.  
  
The Game: I know you were trying to be witty, my previous message wasn't intended to sound as if I was snapping at you.  
  
GazzadaSpazza: True, I did fail to keep you guys guessing on that, but it was necessary for the story. You'll see later so please continue reading.  
  
Mikala: Don't worry, H/Hr will get together eventually, though the question about Cho, I'm not really sure I understand what you mean by what's up with her.  
  
Angelis: I'm glad you like the long chapters and I couldn't kill Alicia off cuz it wouldn't seem right at this time. Plus it'll help Hermione and I was thinking of pairing her up w/ Fred or George later. 


	21. Chapter 20: Order 02: Azkaban

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 20: Order 02: Azkaban  
  
Two weeks passed quickly and soon it was the middle of November. During the two weeks preceding their second mission, Harry and Hermione, along with the other six students belonging to the Order, were drilled daily by Professor Sepet and Walter on casting Patronus Charms since it was more than likely they would be going against Dementors. Percy was able to pull a few strings with the Ministry as Fudge's assistant and smuggled a real Dementor into the castle so that they could practise on it. Unfortunately, they ended up with several close calls as some of the students fainted from fright, but with Harry, Walter, and the Count around, one Dementor didn't pose a threat.  
  
At first the other students, with the exception of Harry, had some problems casting their Patronus Charms, but with some help from Remus they were able to cast something resembling silver gas by the time the two weeks were over. To Harry's dismay, Viktor Krum had also joined them in their training sessions since Professor Dumbledore had agreed that he would join the mission with Karkaroff. Ron, wasn't so pleased with the fact that Krum was back and was flirting with Hermione every now and then, so Harry and he had fun taking turns with keeping Krum away from her, which she was grateful for. Fortunately for them, they didn't have to do that as often as Krum, being a popular Quidditch player, was followed around by girls wherever he went and therefore the trio would be alerted to his presence ahead of time and could hide.  
  
As for Harry's position as acting captain, he was becoming more and more exhausted since he had to hold Quidditch practices everyday before his duelling lessons since their first game against Slytherin would be coming up in another week. Despite the fact that Alicia was out of the Hospital wing, she had trouble moving around due to the loss of blood and heavy injury to her neck. Since she could barely hang on to the broom without intense pain, Ron volunteered to act as a replacement chaser for that particular game or until she had fully recovered. Hermione noticed that Quidditch practice and duelling lessons were starting to take a large toll on Harry's endurance and would always fuss over his lack of sleep, though she did go to great lengths to brew some sleeping potion for him so that he could sleep peacefully. Harry didn't mind the attention he was getting from her and he was inwardly pleased that she still cared for him, despite having to hear her complain at times. However he still couldn't make any moves on her since Ron would get jealous and that could ruin their friendship.  
  
The evening before the mission was to take place, Harry and Hermione were outside on the Quidditch pitch, with Professor Sepet and Walter, practising their Patronus Charms and using their weapons with their wands. Sepet had also given Krum a sword, called the 'Dragonfly Cutter' and for this mission, he allowed Malfoy to get his sword back, provided that he didn't abuse the privilege again.  
  
"Alright, everyone line up facing each other, and let's practise using your swords and daggers in pairs," Sepet commanded. "However, this time to make things interesting, you will be allowed to use your wands in conjunction with your sidearm."  
  
Harry was pleased with this arrangement since it gave him an excuse to be close to Hermione since she was his partner whenever they duelled in this manner. They would be duelling as a pair against each of the other pairs of students.  
  
"Mr. Potter and Miss Granger, you will go up against Mr. Malfoy and Miss Zabini," Sepet announced. "Miss Chang and Mr. Boot will go up against Miss Abbot and Mr. Finch-Fletchley."  
  
"Professor?" Krum asked.  
  
"Yes Mr. Krum?" Sepet replied.  
  
"Vhat vill I be doing?"  
  
At the question, Sepet gave Harry a sly smile. "I think we will make things interesting. - Mr. Krum, join Mr. Malfoy and Miss Zabini against Mr. Potter and Miss Granger."  
  
Harry and Hermione groaned.  
  
"This is hardly fair," Hermione whispered to Harry by her side.  
  
"I know, but doesn't look like we'll have much of a choice," Harry whispered back. "At least you'll get to give Krum the beating he deserves."  
  
Hermione smiled at the thought. "I like your thinking Harry."  
  
"Why thank you my dear Hermione," Harry said jokingly before Sepet interrupted their small conversation.  
  
"Alright, now take your places and commence. Walter and I will ensure that nothing goes wrong."  
  
Krum, Malfoy and Blaise took their positions across from Harry and Hermione. Malfoy was smirking while Blaise just glared at them. Krum was smiling at Hermione, who was feeling uncomfortable from his stares but fortunately his attention was diverted by Malfoy's gloating.  
  
"Now we'll be able to give you the beating you two truly deserve," Malfoy sneered.  
  
"In your dreams Malfoy," Harry returned.  
  
Sepet came over to them to observe the duel and they could see that he had an amused look upon his face.  
  
"Face each other and bow," he commanded. "Then you may begin."  
  
Krum bowed respectfully to them before drawing his sword and wand while Blaise and Malfoy bowed slightly before likewise drawing their weapons and their wands. Harry and Hermione bowed with disdain and drew their weapons and wands.  
  
Blaise and Malfoy advanced towards them with their sword and dagger while Krum fired the first curse at them. Hermione cast an air shield to block the curse and it was dispersed into the air when it hit. Malfoy now lunged at Harry with his sword but Harry was able to parry it and counter, only to meet with Blaise's dagger as she stepped in the way. She caught his sword in the guards of her dagger while Malfoy once again attacked with his sword.  
  
Hermione saw this and cast a shield around Harry, blocking Malfoy's attack. However, Krum had also fired a curse at her and she was hit. She fell to the ground, paralysed. Harry was too busy with Malfoy and Blaise to try anything, and now it had become a 3v1 duel. Harry had to even up the odds a bit, so he quickly cast a polymorph spell on Blaise, turning her into a sheep.  
  
Her dagger fell and freed Harry's sword, allowing him to parry Krum's attack as he came running towards him. Krum fell forward from the momentum of his attack and Harry then fired an ice bolt at Krum's back. Ice shards flew from Harry's wand and pierced Krum's back before freezing him solid.  
  
Malfoy then fired two curses with his wand at Harry and attacked him again with his sword. Harry saw this and quickly cast the anti-magic spell on himself so that when Malfoy's curses hit him, they just dissipated. As for Malfoy's sword, Harry barely had enough time to raise his own sword to parry as Malfoy's came down. The force of the attack caused Harry to lose his grip on his sword, knocking it to the ground, and Malfoy's sword cut him in a downward slash on his chest as he was backing up. He winced in pain as Malfoy's sword had cut through his robes and drawn blood.  
  
Since Malfoy was too busy using his sword to try to curse him Harry was finally able to do something about Hermione. He used the 'finite incantatem' spell on her to release her from her paralysis. Hermione came to her senses and saw that Harry no longer had his sword and was busy trying to dodge Malfoy's sword. She picked up her wand and fired a blinding curse at Malfoy, however Malfoy saw this coming and dodged out of the way.  
  
Hermione quickly picked up her dagger and got off the ground. She ran over to where Harry was and into the way of Malfoy's sword, which happened to be coming across from the left. She caught the sword with her dagger while Harry fired another curse at Malfoy. Not wanting to get hit, Malfoy let go of his sword, which fell to the ground, and rolled on the ground to the right, the curse going over his head.  
  
Now with only his wand, Malfoy had no choice but to try to end the duel as quickly as possible.  
  
"Expelliarmus!" he yelled with his wand pointed at Harry.  
  
However, since Harry still had the anti-magic spell cast on himself, the spell didn't do anything and he still retained his wand. Harry smirked at this and ended the duel by disarming Malfoy with the 'Expelliarmus' spell.  
  
Sepet applauded Harry and Hermione at the end of the duel. "Very good duel you two. Excellent teamwork. I award twenty points to Gryffindor for winning and teamwork and five points to Slytherin for attempting."  
  
"Accio Lion's Crest," Harry said and his sword flew to him. He caught it and sheathed it again under his robes as it was before the duel.  
  
Hermione likewise sheathed her dagger and went over to Harry to heal his injury inflicted by Malfoy. Sepet returned Blaise back to normal before going over to Krum. Malfoy however wasn't pleased at all by how the duel turned out.  
  
"You're lucky Potter that your Mudblood girlfriend was diverting my attention," he said, trying to redeem himself.  
  
Harry wanted to counter Malfoy's statement with one of his own but was saved the trouble of doing so as the Count spoke up in his defence.  
  
"Mr. Malfoy, this duel was fought fairly and nothing you say will change the fact that you and your two counterparts were defeated by Mr. Potter and Miss Granger," the Count pointed out, reviving Krum with a wave of his hand. Krum's body slowly thawed and he was able to move, free of his injuries.  
  
"Mr. Potter and Miss Granger," the Count said, now walking so that he could face all five of them. "You performed admirably despite being outnumbered. You covered each other however Miss Granger would do well not to take her eyes off her opponents. But the redeeming aspect of her actions was the fact that she put her partner's safety above her own. In my opinion, that action was the turning point of the duel. Well done Miss Granger, well done."  
  
Harry felt his cheeks turn a tad red at the Count's evaluation and whispered to Hermione a quick 'thank you' for helping him, which she returned with a warm smile.  
  
"Mr. Malfoy, Miss Zabini, and Mr. Krum," the Count continued. "I wish I could say that your performance was also admirable, however, the fact that you three didn't act as a team like Mr. Potter and Miss Granger caused you to lose the duel. The only part in the duel that allowed you three to survive for as long as you did was the fact that Miss Zabini bothered to catch Mr. Potter's sword with her dagger for Mr. Malfoy, otherwise I believe he would have been killed. - Mr. Krum did a good job of attacking Miss Granger while she was trying to protect her counterpart, but did not take full advantage of the fact that Mr. Potter was occupied by Mr. Malfoy and Miss Zabini earlier."  
  
By then, Harry noticed the other students had already finished and were just staring at them as Sepet concluded his evaluation. Then Walter, along with the other four students came to join them.  
  
"Hi Harry," Cho said, coming up to him.  
  
"Hi Cho. How did your duel go?"  
  
"Terry and I won the duel, but we didn't use our weapons at all like you guys did. That was so cool watching you two beat the Slytherins," Cho commented.  
  
"Enough chatter," Sepet's deep voice interrupted and all the mini- conversations that had been going on ceased. "I would like to see all nine of you cast a Patronus Charm before we head off to the Headmaster's office."  
  
Everyone took out their wands and held in front of them before yelling "EXPECTO PATRONUM!" in unison.  
  
One solid blinding form, Harry's Stag Patronus, took form and shot forth from his wand, followed by eight wisps of silvery gas. Harry's Patronus faded and disappeared right before it hit the Count, however the other eight didn't even make it halfway to him.  
  
"I believe that we have prepared all we can for tomorrow's mission. - Now let us head over to the headmaster's office for the briefing," the Count said blandly, not bothering to chastise them for not casting out the charm perfectly as he usually did.  
  
Naturally, Hermione was peeved at not being able to cast a perfect Patronus, but she went along reluctantly as the Count and Walter led the group, back to the castle and up to Dumbledore's office.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Upon arrival at Dumbledore's office, Harry noticed that everyone was present, except for Remus and Sirius.  
  
"Where's Sirius and Lupin?" Hermione whispered as they took their seats.  
  
"I don't know, probably that time where his uniqueness kicks in. I'd think Sirius would want to keep him company."  
  
"Oh, I guess you're right, but that means we're short two people tomorrow."  
  
At that moment, Professor Dumbledore entered the room with Sirius.  
  
"Good evening everyone," Dumbledore greeted. "Tomorrow will be the second mission we carry out, however we will be short six people. - Remus is undergoing his change and Sirius will be keeping him company, just in case something goes wrong despite the wolfsbane potion. Furthermore, since tomorrow classes will be in session, Minerva, Serverus and Professor Flitwick will be unable to join us, as the students will be wondering where they have gone. Finally, to replace Professor Laikov in his DADA class for the day, Percy Weasley has volunteered as Professor Laikov will be needed on our mission."  
  
"- No offence intended Mr. Weasley," Dumbledore said to Percy.  
  
"None taken Professor," came the lofty reply. "I will honoured to teach the class."  
  
There was a moment of silence before Moody spoke up. "What about the students? Surely they will be missed tomorrow when they don't show up to class."  
  
"Yes Alastor, you're right," Dumbledore agreed. "The students will be excused from their classes tomorrow on the basis that I will be teaching them personally how to use more advanced levels of magic."  
  
At this, Hermione leaned over to whisper something to Harry. "Harry, what if we used the elemental magic? I think there was a cloning spell we could use on ourselves. - Then we could be in two places at once."  
  
"You're right, we can do that but how do we keep it quiet that we're using that?" Harry asked.  
  
"Just explain to our clones what needs to be done, I mean they're exact copies of us so they should know what to do."  
  
If Dumbledore overheard their conversation, he didn't say anything. He just looked at them thoughtfully and returned to planning. "Tomorrow will be one of the more difficult missions we will have to undertake as we will no doubt be fighting large amounts of Death Eaters and possibly the Dementors or the Dark Lord himself. - Now may I please have Alastor brief us on what our objectives are."  
  
Dumbledore sat down while Moody stood up and walked to the centre of the room, his wooden leg making a clunking sound on the floor as he walked. He once again conjured a map with his wand, only this time it was a map of Azkaban instead of a town.  
  
This was the first time that Harry had seen a map of Azkaban. The north end of the map had two large doors, marked as the entrance. On the other side of the doors were two red dots, which Harry assumed were Dementors standing guard inside the foyer. The foyer itself had three separate doors and a staircase. The staircase led to the second floor, while each of the doors led to a different room. The one to the left led to a kitchen, which meals for the prisoners were prepared. The door located to the right of the staircase led to the cellblocks on the first floor, which were separated by doors about every 100 metres, and the door to the right of the entrance led to the interrogation room, located across from a small office, probably for the prison warden.  
  
"The prison has three floors, each one pretty much identical, with the exception of the kitchen. In each of the other two floors, that door leads to prison cells, much like the ones on the first floor. A Dementor guards each of the cells and there are a total of 300 cells between the three floors, so that makes 300 Dementors guarding the prison. In addition three aurors are set there, one per floor as a prison warden to ensure that all runs smoothly," Moody explained.  
  
"There are house elves which cook the food served to the prisoners, but they aren't allowed to leave the kitchen. - Now that you know the basic layout of the prison and what we will encounter, I will explain the objectives. - Since the Dark Lord wishes to free his followers from the prison, we must ensure that anyone he rescues is useless to him."  
  
At that point, Walter decided to add to the briefing. "That is where I come in. I will have a group of about twenty skeletons with me to help since we will be short a few people. As much as I would prefer to kill them and save us the trouble of having to deal with the Death Eaters, the headmaster doesn't wish us to do so. Therefore we will be taking the prisoners here to Hogwarts so that we can keep an eye on them and not worry about the Dementors turning on us."  
  
"Thank you for honouring my wishes Professor Laikov," Dumbledore said gratefully. "- Please continue Alastor."  
  
"The only way in or out of the prison is through the front doors so we have no choice but to enter through there but with our numbers, we should be able to clear the first floor since there are only corridors and won't need to worry about being attacked from the sides," Moody growled. " - I believe the agreed time for the mission tomorrow was 8:00 AM. We will be travelling by Portkey since apparating isn't possible and Azkaban is cut off from the floo network. You will all have an early breakfast in the Great Hall. That's all I have to say."  
  
Moody sat down and Dumbledore stood up once again to speak, though one could only wonder how he manage to say what he was about to say so calmly. "As we will probably be vastly outnumbered tomorrow and the possibility of not returning is great as there aren't any quick ways out of the prison, I just would like to say that it has been a pleasure to have been headmaster at this school and to have known and worked with all of you. - That is all, you are dismissed."  
  
As everyone got up to leave, their moods dropping because of Dumbledore's speech, Harry noticed that Karkaroff and Krum went to Dumbledore to request something, but he never got to figure out what it was as Hermione was urging him to follow her back to the Gryffindor tower.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Along the way, Harry and Hermione were talking about their next mission and what they should do about their clones.  
  
"We should wake up early tomorrow before anyone else is awake, then we can go down to the common room and create the clones," Hermione suggested. "That way no one will notice the switch and we can go down to the Great Hall for breakfast with the others."  
  
"Sounds good. - But I'm more worried about what will happen when we actually go on our mission tomorrow," Harry replied. "I can't shake the feeling that it might be a trap like the first one."  
  
"I know what you mean, but I believe we'll come out alive," Hermione said, giving him a reassuring smile.  
  
"You really think so?"  
  
"Yes, I don't think that Dumbledore will let us come along if there was a high chance of getting killed."  
  
"But what about that speech he made? It's like he thinks he's going to die tomorrow or something," Harry pointed out.  
  
"Somehow he'll find a way to get us out if something goes wrong. He's always made sure that we had a fair chance if nothing else."  
  
"I hope you're right Hermione, I hope you're right," said Harry, shaking his head as if he didn't want to believe that something could go wrong.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
They arrived at the Gryffindor tower and said the password (Hippogriff). The portrait swung open and they walked into the common room, which was deserted by that time.  
  
"It's late, I think we should go to bed," Harry said, looking around the common room.  
  
"You're right. I'll see you tomorrow morning, Good night," Hermione agreed and she walked up to her.  
  
"Good night Hermione." Harry walked up to his dorm and lay down on his four poster bed. Sleep came to him quickly since he was extremely exhausted from Quidditch practices and his duelling classes with Sepet, however his nightmares returned making his night miserable.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Five figures were walking along the street in Hogsmeade at night. All five of them were dressed in black robes, but three of them carried swords under their robes. Snow was falling silently on the ground and on their robes.  
  
"We're almost to the Three Broomsticks; its over here Professor," said Percy, leading the group down the street and to the Three Broomsticks.  
  
"Could we hurry up?" asked an impatient Draco. "I don't want to be out here in the cold forever. - I don't know why I bothered to volunteer to do this."  
  
"Professor, are you sure you vish to come here? Ve have an important mission tomorrow, or have you forgotten?" said Krum, attempting to talk him out of going to the pub.  
  
"I agree with Mr. Krum, Professor Karkaroff," said Sepet, looking around. "You are still a target are under our protection. Just because you have Mr. Weasley and myself around doesn't mean that the Death Eaters won't attack."  
  
"I don't care Professor," snapped Karkaroff. "I'm here to enjoy myself and I will do as I please."  
  
"I believe it was wrong for the headmaster to allow you to come here, much less accept your assistance," Sepet said with a hint of annoyance. "If it were up to me, I would leave your fate to Voldemort's (at which Percy, Karkaroff, and Krum flinched) Death Eaters."  
  
"Shut up Professor," Karkaroff said, spitting out each word. "You're here as my escort, that means that you do as I say."  
  
"My, my Mr. Karkaroff, such manners," the Count said sarcastically. "I didn't expect someone of your high status would insult members of the International Ministry, much less one of the nobility."  
  
"I don't care what you say Professor. Who you work for doesn't concern me and I can care less what your rank is."  
  
"That's enough Professors," Percy said, breaking up the argument. "We're here."  
  
Krum held open the door while Percy, Sepet and Karkaroff entered. He followed behind and they found a quiet table in the corner.  
  
"Viktor, would you please get us four mugs of red currant rum?" Karkaroff requested.  
  
"Of course professor."  
  
"And one Butterbeer for me," Malfoy called after him.  
  
While Krum went away to get the rum and butterbeer, Percy sat in between the Count and a very irritated Karkaroff just in case either of them tried to kill each other, though he was pretty much confident that if it came to blows, Karkaroff wouldn't last a second. He had seen the Count in combat during their first mission and someone of his calibre wasn't someone anyone in their right mind would want to mess with.  
  
"So Professor Sepet, what is it like living in Romania?" Percy asked, trying to start up a conversation.  
  
"The country itself is full of problems. The muggles don't seem to know how to run a country properly, but I suppose I'm content just living in my castle and doing my job for the International Ministry."  
  
"How did you get that job?"  
  
"One of my father's friends was a member of the International Ministry. His job was to hunt down vampires and I became intrigued by it. He saw that I had some magical abilities so he trained me so that I could help him kill them off. After a few years, he saw that I was starting to become very efficient in getting rid of them, so he offered me a position in the Ministry as part of their department of Regulation and Control of Dark Creatures. Soon after however, he was killed by a vampire on one of his excursions. Wanting revenge, I hunted down the vampire and killed him. I spent quite a few years of my life before I accomplished that. Then Voldemort (Malfoy, Percy and Karkaroff winced) came to power and I was transferred to the auror division."  
  
"You fought vampires?" Draco asked, amazed. "That sounds easy."  
  
"It's a lot harder than it sounds Mr. Malfoy," Sepet replied.  
  
"How hard could it be? I mean you just take a wooden stake to them right?"  
  
"Yes, that works, but that's assuming that you can get close to them," the Count replied with a look of amusement as Malfoy had a dumbfounded expression on his face.  
  
By then Krum returned with four mugs full of red currant rum and one full of butterbeer and handed them out. He sat down and started talking with Karkaroff while Percy continued his conversation with Sepet.  
  
"So how did you meet that other Professor - Laikov is it?" Percy asked the Count.  
  
"Yes, that's right. - During World War II, the Nazis had overrun Romania and some of the aurors in our ministry joined them. Walter happened to be working as a spy for the ministry, though I didn't figure that out until I captured him on one of my missions and spared his life. From there, we worked together to wipe out the traitors and once the war was over, the ministry had me return to my father's castle to watch over the dragon roosts that your brother takes care of. Walter decided to join me there and he's been serving me loyally ever since."  
  
The conversations continued on for two more hours and as the night went on, Krum kept ordering more rum, much to the distaste of the other four, but they didn't bother commenting. Karkaroff eventually lightened up after a few drinks and joined the conversation that had been going on between Sepet and Percy. However in the middle of listening to Percy talk about his time at Hogwarts, which he was constantly rambling on about his achievements, Sepet suddenly got up and left the 'Three Broomsticks.'  
  
"That was odd - But stay here, I'm going to see where he's going," Percy told Karkaroff and he too went out leaving Karkaroff with a very drunk Krum and Malfoy.  
  
"Viktor," Karkaroff said, suddenly panicked. "We need to get out of here and hide, there might be Death Eaters around."  
  
"But Professor *hiccup * I vant another drink," Krum said drunkenly.  
  
"You're useless to me. - I'm getting out of here. Give me your sword," commanded Karkaroff and he drew Krum's sword from its sheath with his right hand while pulling out his wand from his robes with his left.  
  
Karkaroff ran out of the pub, but a few moments after he exited the 'Three Broomsticks', something hit him hard on the neck and he fell forward into the snow-covered ground, Krum's sword and his wand landing softly a few feet in front of him, out of reach.  
  
"So we have the traitor Karkaroff attempting to run," said a voice from behind. "I was wondering when you would show yourself. Looks like your escorts can't protect you now."  
  
"Wh-What are you talking about?" Karkaroff said, shaking in fear as he stared at the ground. He tried to get up, but his arms and legs weren't responding even though he could feel them. "I'm not Karkaroff."  
  
"Shut up old man," the voice continued irritably. "You are Karkaroff; my father told me about you. He said the Dark Lord (Karkaroff was shaking in fear even more) has explicit orders not to let you live when we found you."  
  
"I believe slow and painful will be sufficient enough for a traitor. - But I can't let you live too long can I?"  
  
Two hands turned Karkaroff's body around so that he was looking up at the dark sky. He could make out a figure with white-blonde hair and grey eyes, clothed entirely in a black robe with a sword in a black leather sheath at his side.  
  
Malfoy drew his sword and thrust it into Karkaroff's right leg causing blood to flow onto the snow. Karkaroff screamed in pain, but he was still unable to move.  
  
"Did that hurt?" Malfoy taunted. "Maybe I should try your other leg."  
  
Malfoy then thrust the sword into his other leg and more blood seeped from the new cut in his left leg. Malfoy left the sword there and started twisting it, causing Karkaroff to scream in pain even more.  
  
"I'm sure you liked that," Malfoy laughed. "But I think I've overdone it - Time for you to die like the lowly vermin you are Karkaroff."  
  
With that said, the Malfoy pulled the sword from Karkaroff's leg, and walked around to where Karkaroff's head was. He stared down at him and raised the sword with two hands, one hand above the other on the hilt. Karkaroff barely had time to let out a scream before he swung it like a golf club, cutting Karkaroff's head off cleanly, warm blood gushing out onto the snow from the beheaded body while Karkaroff's head rolled to the right, spreading rivulets of blood as it rolled on the snow covered ground.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Harry didn't have a problem waking up early the next morning as his scar was burning. He sat up in bed clutching his scar. It stopped burning soon but it was a while before he realised what his nightmare told him. - Karkaroff was dead.  
  
This also meant that they were short another person on their mission today and that was one less person to help them, regardless if they were a former Death Eater or not. Harry got up to change into his robes and he quickly went downstairs. Hermione wasn't there yet so he sat down on the couch and waited for her.  
  
It was about a half-hour before she came down, but when she came down, she saw him sitting on the couch and went over to him.  
  
"Good morning Harry," she said cheerfully, but her face dropped when she noticed Harry's worried expression. "What's wrong?"  
  
"Karkaroff is dead," Harry replied unemotionally.  
  
"How do you know?"  
  
"I had a nightmare and Karkaroff was killed by Malfoy."  
  
"Are you sure it was Malfoy?"  
  
"White-blonde hair and wielding a sword? It's unmistakably Malfoy. He tortured Karkaroff before killing him," Harry stated.  
  
"Oh great, that makes two Death Eaters to keep track of. But what do we do about - " Hermione began.  
  
"Hermione - We should create our clones," Harry interrupted, not wanting to dwell on the subject of his nightmares for too long. "Then we need to get down to the Great Hall before anyone else notices."  
  
"Oh alright," Hermione conceded reluctantly and made a mental note to ask Harry about it later.  
  
They faced each other and drew out their wands. Hermione went first and pointed her wand at Harry before quietly saying 'effingo Harry.' A faint figure that looked exactly like Harry separated from his body and solidified next to him.  
  
"Hello Hermione," Harry's clone said, but when he turned to look at the real Harry, the clone let out a small yelp. "Why is there another one of me?"  
  
"Nevermind that," Hermione cut in. "You're a clone and he's the real thing. We need you to fill in for us in classes today because we need to go with Professor Dumbledore on a mission."  
  
"Hey, what about me?" the clone asked. "I want to go too."  
  
"Well, let's put it this way," Hermione said irritably. "If you don't stay, then we both get in trouble, you don't want that now do you? Ron will definitely suspect something if we don't show up to class, so go back upstairs and go to sleep or something. Don't worry, you'll have a clone of me to keep you company."  
  
"Alright I'll do it. But only because I don't want you to get into trouble and I don't want to lose Ron's friendship either," the clone replied.  
  
"Thank you," Hermione squealed happily and gave the clone a hug, causing him to blush.  
  
*If the clone is an exact copy of me, then do I do that when Hermione's around? * Harry thought to himself looking at his clone's reaction.  
  
"Now your turn to make a clone of me," Hermione told Harry.  
  
Harry pointed his wand at Hermione and said, "Effingo Hermione." Just like before with Harry, a faint figure looking exactly like Hermione separated from her body and solidified next to her.  
  
"Hi Harry, uh, Harrys," the clone of Hermione said, noticing Harry's clone. "Why are there two of you and why am I standing next to myself? Is this a dream?"  
  
Harry and Hermione sighed. "No it isn't a dream. You're a clone of Hermione and we need you to fill in for her during classes while we go on a mission for Dumbledore," Harry explained. "Just don't do anything we wouldn't do."  
  
"You don't need to worry about that because well - we're you - but please be careful Harry," Hermione's clone said, giving him a look of concern. "I'll just stay here with your other self."  
  
Hermione breathed a sigh of relief that they didn't have to explain the situation anymore and their clones were content to stay behind at the school.  
  
"Come on Harry, let's go," Hermione said. "Bye you two."  
  
"Bye," replied their clones as the real Harry and Hermione walked out of the common room and towards the Great Hall for their early breakfast.  
  
"Well, that was weird," Harry commented.  
  
"Yeah it was," Hermione agreed. " - How long do they last?"  
  
"I think a day, why?"  
  
"Just wondering. We don't need our clones to disappear while we're still away."  
  
Harry grinned, it would be very bad if that did happen since Ron would be wondering why they disappeared into thin air.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they arrived at the Great Hall, Harry and Hermione noticed that they were the first ones there, but the places for everyone were laid out. So they sat down and ate breakfast while they waited for the rest of the Order members.  
  
A few moments after they finished eating breakfast, the other phoenix members, with the exception of the six who were remaining behind during the mission, entered.  
  
"Hi Harry," said Cho, sitting across from him with Terry.  
  
"This is the first time I've been on a mission, but I heard the first one was hell," Terry commented.  
  
"It was," Hermione stated. "We were drenched in blood, thanks to Sepet and Walter killing every Death Eater in sight. Honestly, haven't they heard of taking prisoners?"  
  
"Of course we have," Walter answered from behind, causing Hermione to jump in surprise. "Those five Death Eaters we captured wouldn't be alive if we didn't want to take prisoners Miss Granger. We just don't do it often."  
  
"Where's Sepet?" Harry asked turning around and noticing that Sepet hadn't arrived yet. "Isn't he coming on this mission?"  
  
"Lord Sepet is away on some business so he won't be joining us. The international ministry needs him to deal with something."  
  
"What do you mean he's away on some business?" Hermione said exasperated. "And right before a mission no less."  
  
"My apologies Miss Granger but I will make sure that no harm come to you or anyone else, at the cost of my own life if necessary."  
  
Just then, Percy Weasley came bursting through the doors of the Great Hall with Viktor Krum, who was carrying a bloody sword in one hand and dragging Malfoy behind him, who was tied up with ropes.  
  
"Professors!" Percy exclaimed shakily. "Krum and I found Karkaroff dead on the street in Hogsmeade. Malfoy beheaded him with his sword."  
  
"Calm down Mr. Weasley. Now tell us where Professor Sepet is and why you haven't returned with him," Dumbledore asked calmly.  
  
"He ran off while we were having a drink at the 'Three Broomsticks' and I went to look for him," Percy explained. "A few moments later I heard someone screaming and so I turned around to see what the problem was. When I came back, I saw that Malfoy was standing over Karkaroff's body with his sword drawn."  
  
"It's true," a now sober Krum confirmed. "Mr. Veasley left to go after Professor Sepet and once he left, Professor Karkaroff panicked and he took my svord. He vent out, but Malfoy got up and followed him. He hit him in the back very hard vhen he exited the pub then he tortured and killed him."  
  
"I cast a full body bind on him and Krum and I tied him up before bringing him here," Percy added.  
  
"There isn't much we can do at this time about Igor or Professor Sepet and I won't bother asking why you weren't able to do anything about Mr. Malfoy - Mr. Krum," Dumbledore said. " - I will have Minerva and the rest of the teachers quietly look into it. - Did you clear the body?"  
  
"Yes ve did Professor," Krum answered. "It's lying in an alley and the blood in the snow has been removed."  
  
"Good. Now people living in Hogsmeade won't be asking questions. - Percy I want you and Mr. Krum to join Professor McGonagall with investigating his death after classes finish. Take Mr. Malfoy to the dungeons and put him where he won't cause anymore trouble."  
  
"Alright," Percy acknowledged and he and Krum walked out of the Great Hall, dragging Malfoy behind them.  
  
"Now, we have wasted too much time delaying here. - I will bring the portkeys and we can go over to the Quidditch pitch so that we can use them," said Dumbledore and he led the group out of the Hall and towards the Quidditch pitch.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they arrived at the Quidditch pitch, Dumbledore brought out two old shoes that Harry assumed were the portkeys.  
  
"These are the portkeys," Dumbledore explained. "Walter, Moody, Arthur, Bill, Arabella, Mundungus, and myself will go first and the students will follow. "  
  
With that, the first group grabbed the portkey and with the sound of the howling wind, they disappeared and now it was Harry's turn to go.  
  
Harry grabbed the second portkey with the rest of the students and with usual swirling of colour and howling wind accompanied by the pull behind the navel, they were transported away from the Quidditch Pitch and to Azkaban.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When everything stopped spinning and came into view, Harry, Hermione and the other students were at the entrance to Azkaban and the rest of the Order members were waiting to enter quickly. Walter's twenty skeletons were there already and Harry wondered how he had managed to transport them. Dumbledore picked up the portkeys and tucked them into his robe before leading the group up the hill to the entrance.  
  
Oddly there weren't any dementors outside, but that was probably because they preferred the darkness of the dungeon to the brightness of the sunlight.  
  
Walter motioned to his skeletons and they prepared to enter. Since the front gates were very large, the skeletons would have to open the door while Dumbledore and Moody took care of the dementors inside.  
  
On Dumbledore's signal, six skeletons opened the doors, allowing Dumbledore and Moody to enter. They both cast a Patronus charm, Dumbledore's being a phoenix and Moody's being an owl, to ward off the Dementors inside.  
  
The skeletons left the doors open just in case they needed to make a hasty retreat and the group entered cautiously, leaving four skeletons were left to guard the entrance.  
  
"Professor Laikov, let's get started," Dumbledore ordered.  
  
"Yes sir," Walter answered and he started towards the door, but when he opened it he saw a group of dementors waiting on the opposite side. Walter was taken by surprise and collapsed to the ground, unconscious.  
  
Dumbledore was quick to react and cast another Patronus charm to force the dementors to withdraw to a safe distance while Arthur closed the door and revived Walter.  
  
"I was wondering when you would show up Albus," said a voice off to the left.  
  
When Harry looked over to see who it was, he found himself looking at Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic, flanked by two Dementors and nine aurors. Soon more Dementors entered and Harry felt Hermione and Cho fall next to him. The other students fell down as well and soon they were completely surrounded by a circle of Dementors and aurors.  
  
"How did you find out about this?" Dumbledore asked Fudge.  
  
"Come now Albus, surely you had better sense in picking your members of this 'Order of the Phoenix' that you've formed," Fudge replied mockingly. "Lucius Malfoy was quite informative about your little mission to free the Death Eaters."  
  
"Free the Death Eaters? Fudge have you lost your mind? I am only going to take them back to Hogwarts so that Voldemort (Everyone but Walter and Harry flinch) wouldn't be able to get more followers."  
  
"A likely story. Lucius also told me that you would try that. The dark lord is dead Albus, he was destroyed by - " Fudge had stopped talking because he noticed Harry in the group, who unlike the rest of the students could control his fear and therefore didn't pass out due to the Dementors. "Harry Potter - If I didn't think the treachery didn't go down further, I was mistaken. - I can't believe that Albus would have turned the boy who defeated the Dark Lord fifteen years ago against us."  
  
"Why would you think that we have turned against our world?" "You associated yourself with people like this - necromancer," Fudge continued disdainfully, pointing his finger at Walter. "People who use the Dark Arts for their own benefit. Why would you be associating with them if you weren't planning on betraying us."  
  
"Fudge," said Dumbledore, trying to reason with him. "Lucius fed you with those ideas. Listen to yourself - Do you have any idea how ridiculous you sound?"  
  
"Of course he doesn't," A second voice hissed from the entrance. "He's my little puppet."  
  
Harry didn't have to think twice to know whose voice that belonged to since his scar was now burning. When he looked over at Voldemort, the scar burned even more and he staggered under the pain. Walter's skeletons were destroyed, though from the two bodies that were lying in pools of blood on the entrance floor, the skeletons had managed to kill a few of the Death Eaters.  
  
The nine aurors around Fudge were now drawing out their wands at the sight of Voldemort, however they never got the chance to use them as the Dementors removed their hoods to reveal their grey scabbed skin and shapeless mouths. They picked up each of the aurors and bit into them, sucking out their life and soon nine aurors were lying on the floor with a fate worse than death as the Order members watched in horror.  
  
Voldemort let out an evil laugh. "This is very good. Fudge is my puppet and I have you all trapped in the very place that you had condemned many of my followers to live in. - I should think it very amusing to have you all imprisoned in here with my Dementors for the rest of your miserable lives."  
  
"Lucius' son was very helpful in informing us about this little mission of yours to take my followers and imprison them at Hogwarts. He may turn out to be more loyal than his father," Voldemort continued.  
  
*So that's how they knew when to ambush us this time. * Harry thought angrily despite the pain he was in.  
  
"As much as I would like to play around with you," Voldemort said triumphantly. "I must free my loyal Death Eaters imprisoned in here. - Capture them but do not kill them."  
  
The Dementors advanced and Harry could hear the screams of his mother as she made an effort to protect him from Voldemort. But he quickly thought of something happy and fired off a Patronus Charm from his wand. The stag took shape and some of the Dementors coming from behind fell back to avoid it. Dumbledore also cast another Patronus and chased the remaining Dementors away.  
  
"FOOLS," Voldemort screamed. "ENOUGH OF THIS - KILL THEM!"  
  
As Harry saw the Death Eaters raise their wands to attack, several vials of some type of potion that he didn't recognise were thrown in their direction, shattering on the floor. Green smoke started filling the room, apparently from the shattered vials and soon the Death Eaters weren't able to see anything.  
  
"GET THEM! DON'T LET THEM ESCAPE!" Voldemort commanded.  
  
The Death Eaters tried to comply but when they tried to go through the smoke, it stung their eyes and choked them. Some that hadn't been affected fired curses through the screen in an attempt to hit them before they escaped but none of them came close to hitting them as Walter raised a wall made of bone, similar to the one he used to keep Malfoy in the dungeons to form a barrier and shield them from the curses.  
  
Harry heard Walter call from behind him. "We need to gather the unconscious students and try to get out of here but we need to hurry. My poison screen will only keep the Death Eaters busy for a while."  
  
"Follow me - I have an idea," Harry shouted over the painful screams of some of the Death Eaters as they tried to get past the screen. Surprisingly it only affected the Death Eaters as none of the Order members were affected by the toxic gas that had quickly filled the room.  
  
"Do as he says," Dumbledore said, backing Harry up.  
  
Walter's remaining skeletons picked up the bodies of the unconscious students and lined up, ready to follow Harry.  
  
Harry painfully made his way over to the door leading to the kitchen with the rest of the Order members following. Along the way, they had to cast some Patronus charms to ward away any of the Dementors that had come too close despite the smoke screen Walter provided.  
  
When Harry got to the door, he pointed his wand at the door and cast the portal spell. A blue light shot out of his wand and hit the door, forming a swirling blue portal for them to pass through. Walter's skeletons entered first carrying the unconscious students followed by Moody, Arthur, Bill, Arabella, and Mundungus. Walter and Dumbledore waited outside for Harry to enter, probably to cover their retreat.  
  
"YOU WILL NOT ESCAPE ME HARRY! - AVADA KEDAVRA!" Voldemort screeched, firing the killing curse into the smoke screen. Unlike the other Death Eaters, he seemed more aware of where they were going, but it didn't travel any further than Walter's bone wall.  
  
"We must make haste," Walter stated and Dumbledore stepped through the portal followed by Harry.  
  
Walter finally stepped through moments later and Harry closed the portal. In order to prevent the Death Eaters from entering as well, Walter raised a second wall made entirely of bone, just like he had done earlier.  
  
They were now in the kitchens and everywhere Harry looked, he saw house elves working happily.  
  
*Hermione wouldn't be too happy about this, but maybe they can help us * Harry thought.  
  
"Where to now?" Harry asked Dumbledore.  
  
Dumbledore went up to one of the elves and asked if there was an exit.  
  
"There is no exit sir," the house elf squeaked. "The only exit it through the way you came."  
  
"Then which wall will lead outside?'  
  
"All the walls lead outside. Cliff on the other side of that wall," the house elf said, pointing to the wall across from the door. "Long drop down, no exit that way."  
  
"What is you doing here sir?" the house elf asked.  
  
"We are trying to find a way out. Death Eaters are on the other side of that door and if you don't show us an exit, they will kill us all," Dumbledore explained.  
  
If Dumbledore had expected the house elf to be horrified, he would be disappointed because the house elf looked unconcerned. "Death Eaters? Of course there is Death Eaters here sir. This is Azkaban, the wizarding prison. They is all locked up."  
  
"Perhaps you misunderstood. Voldemort (the house elf's eyes grew bigger) has returned and is attacking this place. - Now which wall is facing the steps leading out?"  
  
"He-who-must-not-be-named is back?"  
  
Dumbledore nodded. "You can come with us."  
  
"That wall," said the house elf, pointing to the wall to the right of the door they just entered. "faces the steps sir but we is unable to follow. We is forbidden by minister to leave this place."  
  
"I see - Thank you," Dumbledore said, causing the house elf to jump in surprise, and motioned for Harry to create a portal again.  
  
Harry went up to the wall and created another portal. This time the adults went first followed by the skeletons bearing the unconscious students. Harry would have liked to bring the house elves along, as they didn't deserve to be left to the mercy of Voldemort, however they would only slow the group down and put them in danger. If they didn't survive then the wizarding world would be lost to Voldemort since the Phoenix Order was the only group actively trying to stop him from gaining complete control at the moment.  
  
Once outside, Harry closed the portal and saw that Dumbledore was leading the group through the wasteland that surrounded the prison and down to a small cave that had been naturally formed in a rock formation located below them. When he looked up, he could see that the toxic gas that Walter used earlier was coming out of the front entrance, which was visible from where he was, but there was no sign of any Death Eaters or Voldemort; probably too busy trying to deal with Walter's potion to be able to do anything else.  
  
Harry followed behind the skeletons and soon he joined the other members in the safety of the cave. Dumbledore, Bill, Arthur, and Moody immediately started reviving each of the students who were carried by Walter's skeletons.  
  
After each of the students came to, Dumbledore immediately explained the situation to them and Hermione immediately started looking around for Harry with a worried look on her face, but she found him near Walter's skeletons, staring at her with concern. She breathed a sigh of relief and went over to join him.  
  
"Harry, I'm so glad you made it," she said, giving him a hug, which he returned happily, even though his scar hadn't quite stopped burning yet.  
  
"I'm happy that you made it back too Hermione."  
  
Dumbledore brought out the portkeys once again and placed them on the ground. "We must return quickly before anyone pursues us. - The students will go first and we will follow."  
  
The students made a circle around the portkey and touched it together. Harry felt the pull behind his navel as before and with a swirling of colour accompanied with a howling wind, he and the rest of the students found themselves back at the Quidditch pitch of Hogwarts.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The adult members of the Order arrived soon after them and they headed back to the school and to the Hospital wing. Much to Harry's relief, unlike the first mission, they weren't covered in the blood of the Death Eaters and didn't have to worry about leaving a trail of blood on the ground nor was his scar burning now that Voldemort was out of range.  
  
The students were still feeling weak from having passed out due to the Dementors and Madam Pomfrey immediately gave them each a bar of Honeydukes' best chocolate and had them sit down on the bed. She also insisted that Walter eat a bar of chocolate as well, which he accepted with a look of irritation at his failure to carry out the mission perfectly. His skeletons weren't present as they were sent out to patrol the halls in case any Death Eaters decided to show up at the school.  
  
All of the Order members that had gone on the mission were likewise present since Dumbledore wanted to have a word with all of them. After a quick talk with Madam Pomfrey, Dumbledore strode to the centre of the room while she went to lock the door.  
  
"This mission has revealed to us the extent of the plans of the Dark Lord," Dumbledore said heavily. "He now has control over our Ministry and we may come under heavy attack for our failure this time."  
  
"What should we do now?" asked Arthur. "The ministry will no longer be safe for Bill, Percy, or myself."  
  
"You three will not return to the ministry," Dumbledore replied. "It will not be safe for you - and 'The Burrow' will not be safe for your family; therefore your entire family must come here Arthur."  
  
"What about Malfoy?" Hermione chipped in. "He betrayed us and we paid dearly for it."  
  
"I'm afraid Mr. Malfoy will have to be removed from this Order and from this school."  
  
"But won't it look like we've expelled him for nothing?" Cho asked.  
  
"That will be taken care of Miss Chang. I am well aware of Mr. Malfoy's attempts to provoke Harry and Miss Granger. Professor Laikov came to me with information that Mr. Malfoy threatened Mr. Weasley in Professor Snape's classroom with his sword. In addition, he killed a person in Hogsmeade. I believe that is enough grounds for him to be expelled," Dumbledore explained.  
  
Madam Pomfrey came back in from her office carrying more chocolate and some potions for everyone to drink.  
  
"I believe Poppy would like to check up on all of you, therefore I will be leaving. However I trust you should be released back to your towers later this evening," Dumbledore said to the students. "You will have lunch and dinner here since all of the students are under the impression that you are taking classes with me for today. Your homework will be sent to you by owl later."  
  
With that, Dumbledore left the Hospital Wing, leaving them there in the care of Madam Pomfrey who made them eat more chocolate and drink some potions to put them all to sleep until the evening.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When Harry and Hermione arrived back at the Gryffindor tower in the evening, they found that the common room was empty since it was dinnertime and all the students would be in the Great Hall. Since they had already eaten dinner in the Hospital Wing, they didn't feel hungry and so they decided to take a walk.  
  
"I wonder how our clones held up," Hermione said curiously.  
  
"I'm sure they're convincing enough to keep Ron busy," Harry replied.  
  
"What do you want to do? We have another hour - then we need to switch places with our clones somehow."  
  
"Oh that'll be fun," Harry said sarcastically. "We just walk up to them and tell them to switch with us and everything will be alright."  
  
"I didn't mean it like that," said Hermione, though when she thought of what he had just said, she found it very funny.  
  
"So what did you mean?"  
  
"We get one of the professors to help us. Just say that they would like a word with them and we switch then."  
  
"Yeah, but who would be willing to help us?"  
  
"Walter of course."  
  
"Alright, let's go see him."  
  
So they made their way down to the dungeons where Walter's office was located. When they arrived, they knocked on the door and a rather enraged Walter opened the door.  
  
"What is it?" Walter asked annoyed at being bothered with his work.  
  
"Uh," Hermione spoke up timidly. "We were just wondering if you could help us with a problem."  
  
"Ah, Miss Granger - Mr. Potter," Walter said, his face expression softening. "My apologies for my rudeness - Please come in."  
  
They entered Walter's office, which looked pretty much the same as it did the first time they came to see him, and took a seat at his desk.  
  
"What can I do for you? - Though I must apologise for my failure this morning. I should have kept a closer eye on Mr. Malfoy," Walter mused angrily.  
  
"It's not your fault Walter," Hermione said encouragingly. "You're starting to sound like Harry when something bad happens that's out of his control."  
  
Harry blushed slightly at that remark and Walter continued. "Thank you Miss Granger. Your words are certainly relieving for me to hear. I was thinking of resigning my position for my failure."  
  
"DON'T RESIGN!" they both exclaimed in unison, causing both of them to burst into a fit of laughter.  
  
"I meant, don't resign," Hermione said, calming down. "You're the best Dark Arts teacher that we've had other than Professor Lupin."  
  
"She's right Walter," Harry added. "You've been very helpful to us and we don't want you to leave."  
  
"Thank you both. - Now what was that problem that you wanted to discuss with me?"  
  
"Well, you see we didn't leave the school while we were on our mission," Harry explained. "We used magic to create some clones of ourselves to keep our friend Ron from suspecting anything."  
  
"We just want you to tell us, er our other selves, to come to your office. Then we can switch places with them and go back to see Ron," Hermione said.  
  
"Very well, I shall fulfil your request. It's the best I can do to make up for my failure," Walter said, getting up. "Please wait here."  
  
Walter left his office, leaving Harry and Hermione alone, free to do as they pleased for now.  
  
"I wonder what books he has," said Hermione, getting up to look at the bookshelves lining the right wall of Walter's office.  
  
"Hermione - Only you would be interested in books that our Professors read."  
  
"Well, if it helps us understand some of his magic, then why not?"  
  
"I thought that you didn't like using the Dark Arts."  
  
"I don't - I'm just curious. Maybe we can understand Walter a bit more - or even Sepet."  
  
"I guess - but you'll probably want to get away from those books before Walter suspects anything."  
  
Eventually Walter returned with the clones and they could get on with switching places.  
  
"Hi Harry," Hermione's clone greeted.  
  
"Hey you two. How was your day?" Harry asked.  
  
"Oh - it was alright. All the professors looked surprised to see us though," Hermione's clone replied.  
  
"That because we weren't supposed to be there," Hermione stated. " - We should get back to Ron before he suspects something. Thanks for filling in for us though."  
  
"No problem. We like doing this. It's actually kinda fun," said Harry's clone, grinning. "Imagine the number of pranks we could pull on everyone and they wouldn't know who we were."  
  
"You mean the number of people that would get mad at us because you two look like us," Hermione said disapprovingly. "You will not do anything of that sort."  
  
Harry's clone smiled. "Well, we'll see you two the next time you need us. "  
  
Harry and Hermione took out their wands and pointed them at their clones before using the 'dispel magic' spell. Both clones faded and melted back into Harry and Hermione, leaving an empty space where they had stood before.  
  
"That was very impressive magic you two," Walter commented. " - But I think I've kept you from Mr. Weasley. He should be waiting just outside of your common room."  
  
"Thanks Walter," they called as they left his office to go find Ron.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
They found Ron waiting where Walter said he would be, just outside of their common room.  
  
"What did Walter want?" Ron asked.  
  
"Oh he just wanted to tell us something about our Defence Class with Sepet," Hermione lied.  
  
"Yeah, he thinks it's too much for us to handle in the evening in addition to our classes," Harry added, hoping Ron wouldn't ask anymore questions.  
  
"I guess. - Hey let's go in - We need to do our homework for tomorrow's class," Ron groaned. "You think you can help me with my homework Hermione?"  
  
"Why not - I need to do my homework too," Hermione replied before saying the password (sceptrum) to their common room and the portrait swung open allowing the trio to enter.  
  
A/N: Well that's their second mission. Hope you liked it. I believe this is the longest chapter I've done so far (basically the length of two chapters put together) hence why it took me way too long, not to mention the editing time. The next chapter will be Quidditch game vs. Slytherin, so it probably won't advance the plot by much, with a few exceptions.  
  
Special Thanks to Juna-Mae for beta reading and for helping me with the plot. You're THE BEST beta reader I have. - Actually, you're the only beta reader I have, hehe, can't thank you enough.  
  
Angelis: Thank you for reviewing, but I don't know if I'll be able to hook Harry & Hermione up anytime soon. As for pleasing everyone, you're right, I can't do that since someone's going to be disappointed in one way or another, but if my what I do doesn't appeal much to the readers, then no one is going to read the story and my time will have been wasted; so that's why I do make some attempt to incorporate everyone's ideas into my fic.  
  
"Heather": Don't worry, Krum won't get Hermione.  
  
"Panther": Thanks for the note. Yes, you're right, the physics doesn't work w/ the way the amulets were set up. So I changed it accordingly.  
  
The Game: Sorry, but I can't have Hermione's role diminish for several reasons that you'll find out later.  
  
Promy: Thanks for reviewing, sorry you're disappointed with Hermione's form but it'll be useful later.  
  
Phoenix of Light: Thank you for the review but you don't need to worry about the updates, I've been trying to update fairly fast. The only exception would be this chapter.  
  
Weird-n-nextdoor: Thanks for reviewing glad you like the story. Yes, I did put a lot of thought into this fic.  
  
Mikala: As much as I'd like to answer that question "what's up with cho?" I can't do that just yet, otherwise I'd ruin the romance plot to the story. You will find out later whether or not she's faking, just keep reading. As for Krum, I don't know what I'll do with him, just yet. Though thank you for the suggestion.  
  
Quis: Thank you for telling me about the technical error. You're right, the Claymore is a two-handed sword so I changed it to a Ruby Eye Serpent Sword, which is a one-handed sword.  
  
Marba50: yes, you're right, becoming an animagus is supposed to take a long time. That's why Hermione can only transform her hands. Though the explanation for Harry is that he's really powerful (he just doesn't know the full extent of his powers yet) so he was able to do more the first time but it still took him a month to get it down. Thank you for reviewing. 


	22. Chapter 21: The Best Seeker

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K Rowling.  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 21: The Best Seeker  
  
The week following their return from their second mission, rumours were going around the school why the students who took part in the mission, with the exception of Harry and Hermione, were out for the entire day. As much as the teachers told the school that they were learning more advanced spells, the school still thought that they were up to something since they were gone until after classes finished and didn't show up to any meals.  
  
Professor Sepet returned the day after their failed mission and Harry suspected that he was up to something even though Malfoy was the one accused of killing Karkaroff. Sepet relentlessly made Harry's life more miserable than ever in the duelling class by pairing him up with Blaise, who wasn't as supportive of him as Hermione had been. The Count also increased the difficulty of his training by making him fight six on two duels on top of the usual one on one against the Count, which he always lost. In addition, one of the Gryffindor students, Parvati, had stopped showing up to classes in the morning and wouldn't be seen until lunchtime, which baffled everyone, as she normally didn't miss any classes. By the end of the gruelling week, Harry was indeed looking forward to the Quidditch game against Slytherin as beating them would be a major morale boost and he had trained his team very hard for it.  
  
Slytherin was supposed to have forfeited the match since they didn't have a replacement seeker ever since Malfoy was officially expelled from the school for endangering students and imprisoned in the dungeon under close guard until an investigation could be carried out. However someone had volunteered to replace him as the Slytherin seeker therefore Gryffindor had to uphold their end of the game in order to have a shot at the Quidditch cup at the end of the year.  
  
The morning of the Quidditch match against Slytherin was bright and cold. Harry, Ron and Hermione were eating breakfast in the Great Hall and Harry was discussing the Quidditch match with Ron while Hermione was sitting with a book propped up against her goblet.  
  
"Did you ever figure out who the seeker was for Slytherin?" Ron asked.  
  
"No, I haven't but I'm worried," Harry replied. "We've beaten Slytherin many times, but that was because Malfoy was a pushover as a seeker. The seeker this time may be a lot better than he was and it's possible that he may be even better than me."  
  
"Oh come on Harry," said Hermione, turning to face him. "You're the youngest player to have become a seeker in a century and no one else has done that again. So go and teach those Slytherins a lesson."  
  
Harry smiled at her. "Thanks for the encouragement Hermione."  
  
"You're welcome," she replied, grinning. "I'll be in the stands cheering for you both."  
  
"Really?" said Ron, his face brightening at the thought of Hermione cheering for him.  
  
"Yes - Why wouldn't I be cheering for my two best friends?"  
  
"Good point," Ron said, his cheeks flushing with colour.  
  
At that point, several owls flew into the Great Hall and started dropping assortments of packages and papers. One of the owls dropped something that looked like a copy of the Daily Prophet in front of Hermione, who picked it up and started to read it.  
  
As she started reading it, her face fell and by the time she had finished, all of the colour in her face was drained and she looked very distressed.  
  
"What's wrong Hermione?" Harry asked, noticing that she was looking rather pale.  
  
She didn't answer and just handed the paper to Harry, who took it and began reading.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The Corrupted Headmaster & 'The Boy Who Lived'  
  
Written by the talented and vivacious Rita Skeeter whose sharp pen has punctured many reputations.  
  
Albus Dumbledore, the eccentric headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, has always appeared to the public eye as the best headmaster that Hogwarts has ever had in years reports Rita Skeeter, Special Correspondent.  
  
However, last week he and a group of wizards were caught by our very own Minister of Magic: Cornelius Fudge, attempting to free the Death Eaters of Azkaban. Why he would want to free the Death Eaters is beyond comprehension, as they were all well-known followers of He-Who-Must-Not-Be- Named, but it is clear that he has finally shown his true colours.  
  
"We always knew that it was a mistake to allow him to become headmaster. We granted him power and look where he has gone," says Lucius Malfoy, a prominent member of the Ministry of Magic. "I don't think any of the students are safe with such an abominable person in charge. I am personally withdrawing my son, Draco, from that school and I encourage all parents who are still loyal to the ministry to do the same."  
  
If such treachery couldn't be worse, among this group was the Harry Potter, 'The Boy Who Lived.' Whether or not he was corrupted by the headmaster or there on his own will is unknown, but from reports that I have personally heard from students at the school such as Draco Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson, Harry Potter has often been given special treatment by the professors to the point where he can blatantly ignore the school rules. The fact that he too has betrayed the wizarding world is shocking to us all but given the circumstances we can all see that it was only a matter of time before he too abused his powers.  
  
The members of the ministry have given Fudge high praise for acting decisively and stopping the overbearing headmaster at Azkaban from freeing the Death Eaters. Credit has also been given to Draco Malfoy for providing the information that prevented this raid from succeeding and the ministry has granted him the 'Order of Merlin,' second class.  
  
Where this appalling news will lead to is unknown right now but according to Fudge, it will be only a matter of time before the traitorous headmaster and his group of rogue wizards will be brought to justice and imprisoned along with the Death Eaters in Azkaban.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Harry put down the paper and looked over at Hermione who was now really worried. He felt like he shouldn't be at Hogwarts anymore and wished he were somewhere far away from the wizarding world.  
  
"What did the Daily Prophet say?" Ron asked, looking from Harry to Hermione and back at Harry again, both of them sitting still with horrified looks on their faces. "You both look like you've been petrified."  
  
"See for yourself. - I may as well be dead," Harry said shakily and handed the paper over to Ron who also started to read it.  
  
Unlike Hermione, who knew what was going on, Ron looked rather unfazed by what he was reading.  
  
"It's an article by that Skeeter reporter from last year, so what of it?" he asked, putting the paper down.  
  
"Ron - do you realise what Skeeter has done to Dumbledore and Harry?" said Hermione, her voice full of concern.  
  
Ron just stared at her blankly, apparently confused.  
  
"It means that Dumbledore and Harry have just been labelled as criminals and could be thrown into Azkaban at anytime," Hermione said frantically, picking up the article from the table and pocketing it.  
  
"But that's ridiculous!" he exclaimed loudly causing several heads to turn and look at him. "Harry never left Hogwarts. I mean everyone saw him at potions, even the Slytherins. If anyone was missing, it was Malfoy."  
  
"We know Ron, but still, Harry can get in a lot of trouble and so could Dumbledore."  
  
"What do you think we should do then since you're the smart one."  
  
"I really don't know - we probably should go see Dumbledore about this."  
  
"But the Quidditch match is in an hour and Harry needs to prepare for it so that we can beat the Slytherins."  
  
"Honestly Ron, can't you think about anything but Quidditch?"  
  
"Well, what do you say Harry? You've really been quiet about this," Ron asked, looking to Harry for an answer.  
  
Harry just looked at him, somewhat peeved that Ron had decided to drag him into the argument with Hermione, but he responded eventually, "I think we should go beat the Slytherins first, then go see Dumbledore. If we went to see Dumbledore, we may be missed at the match - then people will really suspect something."  
  
"Oh all right," Hermione conceded. "I suppose a small Quidditch match isn't going to get us killed."  
  
"It's about bloody time you gave in," Ron said pointedly.  
  
"I didn't give in because of you, Ron, I gave in because Harry had a point," Hermione countered hotly.  
  
"Enough you two," Harry cut in, breaking up the argument, which was starting to get out of hand again. "Let's get going, we don't want to miss the game."  
  
With that, he got up from his seat and walked out of the Great Hall with Ron and Hermione following closely behind.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
As the trio made their way over to the Quidditch pitch, Harry's mood lightened somewhat as the Quidditch game against Slytherin would help take his mind off of Skeeter's article. How she had found out about their little raid on Azkaban was unknown to him, but somehow the Order would have to deal with the ramifications of such an article.  
  
"Hey Potter," said a voice from behind them. "Glad to see you didn't back away from the match."  
  
Harry wheeled around quickly, causing Ron and Hermione to stop and turn around as well only to see Malfoy coming towards them, escorted by Walter and two of his skeletons, each of them carrying a sword and a black shield.  
  
"What do you want Malfoy?" Harry asked, glaring at him.  
  
"Nothing, just wanted to let you know that this time Slytherin will give you guys the thrashing you deserve."  
  
"Shove off Malfoy," Ron said, his jaw clenched tightly. "Slytherin hasn't beaten us yet and we won't start now. Harry's the best seeker this school has ever seen in years and no one's going to beat him."  
  
"Not even Krum?" hinted Malfoy and Harry's face fell.  
  
*WHAT? * he thought, *I'm going up against Krum, a professional Quidditch seeker? This won't be good. *  
  
"Krum is playing for Slytherin?" Hermione asked. "But that's against the rules. He's not even a student in the school."  
  
"Really mudblood, when will you learn," Malfoy gloated, "that my father has more power than that old fool we call our headmaster. - Besides, that old coot agreed to allow Krum to play for Slytherin."  
  
"I don't think Dumbledore would agree to that, especially since Krum is a professional player. - Harry won't stand a chance."  
  
"Well, why don't you ask him? He did agree to it after all - he didn't sound confident enough to think that Potter here would win."  
  
"I believe that is enough Mr. Malfoy," Walter interrupted sharply. "Although the headmaster has allowed you to get out of your cell for this game - I will remind you that you are still my prisoner and you will not get out of line."  
  
"And what if I did?" Malfoy scoffed, glaring at Walter. "My father will ensure you're removed with that old man once he gets the board of governors to agree."  
  
"Mr. Malfoy, you are trying my patience," Walter replied menacingly. "I wouldn't suggest that you push your luck any further."  
  
"Just wait old man. My father will come with his master and you will all suffer for this."  
  
At that remark, a steel boot came and hit Malfoy hard in the side followed up by Walter's fist hitting him in the stomach. Malfoy doubled up in pain and threw up some blood before falling to the ground.  
  
"I warned you Mr. Malfoy - now you have received your punishment. Unlike the headmaster, I am not as forgiving when it comes to treating prisoners. Now I suggest you get going," Walter said, forcibly pulling Malfoy up and shoving him towards the Quidditch pitch with the two skeletons following in formation.  
  
"That stupid git," Ron sneered. "He got what he deserved."  
  
"Ron, no one deserves to be treated like that, even if it is Malfoy," Hermione countered.  
  
"First the house elves and now prisoners," Ron said wearily. "Really Hermione, won't you ever stop trying to free them? I mean the house elves like working and the prisoners deserve the treatment."  
  
"Seriously Ron, the house elves deserve a break and even prisoners shouldn't be treated so brutally."  
  
Harry, not wanting to waste anymore time, cut in before Ron had the chance to respond, "Let's go you two, we've been hung up long enough."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they arrived at the Quidditch pitch, Harry went with Ron to the locker rooms so that they could change into their Quidditch robes while Hermione made her way over to the stands where the other Gryffindor students were already present.  
  
"Ready everyone?" Harry asked once everyone was ready.  
  
They all nodded.  
  
"Today will probably be the hardest game we've ever played against Slytherin as Krum will be their seeker."  
  
"WE'RE PLAYING AGAIN KRUM?!" the Weasley twins exclaimed in surprise.  
  
Harry was nervous now, but he made an attempt to speak confidently, regardless, "Yes, that's right - Malfoy got Krum to volunteer and his father ensured that Krum would play as seeker. But don't be discouraged - I'm sure we'll all do our best. Dumbledore has every confidence that we will hold our own. We must not let him down."  
  
"That's the spirit! Let's clobber the Slytherins!" Seamus shouted, into Dean's ear causing him to jump away.  
  
Harry grinned. He was certainly feeling a lot better after that Seamus' burst of energy. "Let's go."  
  
The team filed out and onto the field, loud cheers erupting from the stands and Harry could spot Hermione jumping up and down excitedly next to Hagrid, who was also cheering gleefully. The sight raised his spirits even further and he felt that he stood a chance against Krum now.  
  
They walked to the centre of the field where Madam Hooch was already waiting and Harry stood facing Flint, the Slytherin captain. They shook hands, Flint squeezing Harry's hand as hard as he could before walking back to his team. Krum was studying Harry, probably so that he could see what kind of person he was up against.  
  
"Mount your brooms, please."  
  
The players climbed onto their brooms and soon Madam Hooch blew her silver whistle.  
  
All fifteen brooms rose into the air and the Quaffle was thrown into the air.  
  
"The Quaffle is immediately taken by the beautiful Gryffindor chaser, Katie Bell and she's now speeding off towards the Slytherin goal posts with their chasers in pursuit. - HA CAN'T CATCH HER CAN YOU?"  
  
"JORDAN!" warned Professor McGonagall, but she was partially drowned by the loud cheers from the stands.  
  
"Sorry Professor."  
  
"KATIE SCORES AND ITS GRYFFINDOR 10-0! Now Montague has possession of the Quaffle and is speeding over towards the Gryffindor side followed by the Gryffindor's new chasers Ron Weasley and Dean Thomas. Montague shoots and YES! It's stopped by Gryffindor's keeper, Seamus Finnigan. - CAN'T AIM CAN YOU?"  
  
"Jordan, I'm warning you -"  
  
"Sorry Professor."  
  
"Now Seamus is speeding towards the Slytherin posts again - OUCH - He was just hit by a bludger directed at him by that bas- sorry Professor - Bole. - And sadly Seamus is out of the game."  
  
"Pucey now has the Quaffle and is heading towards the goal posts - Almost got him with that bludger Fred - sorry Professor - and Slytherins score, evening it up."  
  
Harry was flying around high above the field waiting for some sign of the snitch. A loud moan from the crowd indicated that the Slytherins had scored again since the Gryffindor keeper was out of the way. He had to catch the snitch before Krum, who was likewise looking around for the snitch, found it. This time with both of them on Firebolts, it would be an even match in terms of speed.  
  
"Chaser Bell now has the Quaffle and is flying towards the Slytherin goal posts - Watch out - here comes Flint and Pucey right behind her - Hey you dirty - sorry Professor - they've trapped her in between them and are forcing her down. - THAT'S A FOUL! Unfortunately, Bell is out of the game, unconscious from having been slammed into the ground. Penalty shot to Gryffindor."  
  
"Chaser Ron Weasley takes the shot and - YES! HE MAKES IT! GRYFFINDOR 20- 20!" exclaimed Jordan, the crowd roaring with delight at the Slytherin's failure.  
  
Harry was now somewhat worried. They had their keeper out of the game and now a chaser while the Slytherins had all their players still. He could see that Dean was trying his best to take over as keeper and he managed to block the last shot taken by the Slytherin chaser, Warrington.  
  
Suddenly Harry saw Krum dive and head towards the Gryffindor posts. Harry looked over to see if he had seen the snitch and indeed he had. It was hovering in the middle of the field and Harry immediately sped towards it, attempt to catch up with Krum.  
  
Eventually Harry caught up with Krum, which was surprising as Krum had a head start, and their brooms were flying side by side. Two bludgers went over their heads and in the direction of the snitch, but before the bludgers got near it, both the Gryffindor and Slytherin beaters had flown in front of the snitch and hit both of the bludgers, targeting the opposing team's seekers.  
  
The bludgers went sailing towards their heads with increased speed from the combined hits of both beaters on each team. Krum and Harry turned over on their brooms so they were both flying upside down and Harry could feel the one of the bludgers fly over his feet, where his chest would have been if they were both flying right side up. All four beaters glared at each other before flying away and both seekers rolled over again before flying up as the snitch had disappeared.  
  
The Slytherin chasers outnumbered Ron three to one since Dean took over as keeper and unfortunately he was now having problems stopping them from scoring. Soon the game was in Slytherin's favour, 70 to 20.  
  
"We have chaser Dean in possession of the Quaffle and flying towards the goals - it's hit out of his hand by a bludger aimed at him by Slytherin beater, Derrick. The Quaffle dropped is taken by Pucey and he's flying towards the goal posts - Fly back quickly Dean! DAMN! He scored. Sorry Professor."  
  
The crowd groaned as the Slytherins cheered. The game wasn't going well for Gryffindor indeed with Slytherin in the lead by 60 points.  
  
"Dean once again has the Quaffle - That's the way to do it Ron! - Ron has taken over Dean's position as keeper as Dean speeds towards the Slytherin side. Great tactics! - Two Slytherin chasers are heading towards him and WATCH OUT FOR THOSE BLUDGERS! Whew - a narrow miss."  
  
"The Slytherin chasers are now on his tail and - WHAT! FLINT IS PULLING HIS BROOM TO SLOW HIM DOWN! NO BLAGGING! FOUL YOU CHEATING BASTARDS!" Jordan shouted.  
  
McGonagall didn't bother to chastise him, as she too was angered at the Slytherin's cheating.  
  
Madam Hooch blew her whistle. "I expected a clean game - apparently I was wrong - penalty shot to Gryffindor."  
  
Dean took the shot, but unlike Ron, Flint blocked it and the crowd booed. The game continued and Flint headed towards the Gryffindor posts with the Quaffle, dodging a bludger aimed at him by Fred, who cursed when he missed. He took the shot and the crowd cheered when Ron blocked it.  
  
Ron threw the Quaffle to Dean who tried to catch it but it was intercepted by Warrington who shot it into the far right goal post before Ron could get there, scoring 10 more points for Slytherin.  
  
Dean took the Quaffle and flew over exhaustedly towards the Slytherin side. Derrick and Bole both hit bludgers in his direction but they were repelled by Fred and George who were escorting Dean over to the Slytherin goal posts.  
  
"Nice play by the Gryffindor beaters and now they are flying in formation, Dean being escorted by the Weasley twins," commented Jordan. "He's almost made it to the goal posts - here comes the Slytherin chasers led by Flint - OUCH - QUIT CHEATING YOU - Penalty shot to Gryffindor."  
  
Pucey had rammed headlong into Dean, knocking both players out of the game. Hope of victory was looking slim for Gryffindor now as they were down their keeper and two chasers even though Slytherin lost one of their chasers.  
  
Up above the field, Harry continued looking around for the snitch, but he saw Krum dive once again and the crowd gasped as they saw him dive. Just in case he had seen the snitch, Harry dived down after him and looked around for it. Not seeing the snitch, he realised that Krum was trying to use the Wronski Feint on him and he pulled out of the dive.  
  
Krum eventually noticed that Harry wasn't following him and he too pulled out of it. Flying back up, Krum dodged a bludger aimed at him by George by doing a roll before returning to his original altitude above the field.  
  
By now, Ron stopped trying to block any of the shots the Slytherins were taking and concentrated on trying to score points for Gryffindor. Unfortunately being outnumbered three to one, he wasn't able to make it past the halfway point on the field and the Slytherins shot ahead 160 to 20.  
  
Then Fred signalled to Harry to call a time out, which he did happily, as the game wasn't going too well for them. Madam Hooch blew her whistle acknowledging it.  
  
The remaining players descended and the Gryffindor team members made their way over to Harry.  
  
"This isn't good," Fred stated.  
  
"What do you think we should do? End the game now? Neither of you have found the snitch yet and we're getting creamed right now," George added questioningly.  
  
"Why don't we go for a stalemate?" Ron suggested causing everyone looked in his direction. "It's like chess; if you can't win then go for a stalemate."  
  
"Looks like it's up to me now," Harry said resolutely.  
  
"Yeah, you need to catch the snitch," Ron agreed.  
  
"I know."  
  
"Good luck Harry - we're counting on you," George said  
  
"We'll try to get Krum out of the match with our bludgers."  
  
The team headed back to the field and the game resumed. Harry flew up high once again with Krum and continued to look around for the snitch, which was doing well in keeping out of sight for this game.  
  
"The game isn't going well for Gryffindor and it looks like this may be the first time they've ever lost to Slytherin. Neither of the seekers have located the snitch and this game could well last long into the day - Warrington has possession of the Quaffle and Ron is heading towards him. He's flying up towards the goal posts - looks like Ron will get to him in time - NOO - he pulled a Porskoff Ploy, dropping the Quaffle to Montague who was flying below him and Montague scores. C'MON DON'T LET THOSE SNOBBY BA - sorry Professor - KEEP FIGHTING!"  
  
Harry was now getting desperate. If Slytherin scored again, then everything would be lost. Ron had the Quaffle and was flying around, but wasn't making any attempt to score, as the Slytherins would have possession of the Quaffle if he missed. He was doing well in dodging each bludger being hit in his direction as well as the Slytherin chasers; however it was clear that he was starting to get exhausted from having to continuously move around.  
  
Something golden flashed down on the field catching Harry's eye and he dived down at it - it was the snitch. Harry quickly looked behind him to see if Krum was following, not wanting to take his eyes off the snitch for too long. Krum was indeed following but he was slowly catching up.  
  
"It looks like Harry has seen the snitch - ," Jordan commented excitedly as the crowed looked on anxiously to see who would catch it. "The snitch has changed directions and has levelled off - It's flying towards the Gryffindor posts with both seekers in hot pursuit. - They're now evenly matched - "  
  
Jordan had stopped commenting, as he too was anxious to see who would get the snitch. Meanwhile Hermione was looking on in the stands worriedly digging her fingernails into her cheeks and Ron was still occupied by the Slytherin chasers following closely behind him and slowly catching up.  
  
Then an idea struck Ron and he flew towards the snitch as well, but from the opposite direction that the seekers were coming from. Both Krum and Harry were closing fast on the snitch but Ron would still get there first.  
  
Right before he got to the snitch, Ron threw the Quaffle at Krum as hard as he could, his anger at Krum for taking Hermione to the Yule Ball, filling him with a burst of energy. Both Harry and Krum saw the Quaffle coming towards them, but not expecting such a stunt from the Gryffindor chasers, Krum's natural reflexes caused him to catch the Quaffle with both hands. However that didn't leave him holding onto his broom and the force of the Quaffle hitting him made him lose his balance and he to fell to the ground with a look of surprise as Harry's hand closed around the snitch, bringing the game to an end.  
  
"AND IT'S A TIE! THE BRILLIANT GAMBLE BY CHASER RON WEASLEY AND SEEKER HARRY POTTER THAT HAS NEVER BEEN SEEN BEFORE IN THE HISTORY OF QUIDDITCH PAID OFF!" Lee Jordan shouted.  
  
The crowd was cheering loudly now as Harry and Ron both flew down to the ground, drowning out the moans of the Slytherins who were disappointed at the fact that they had been cheated out of victory once again.  
  
No sooner had Harry and Ron touched the ground, cheering Gryffindor fans; eager to take them to the party surrounded them. Hermione gave both of them a hug and a kiss on the cheek before scurrying away in embarrassment and the two players found themselves blushing furiously. Surprisingly, Cho was among the crowd and she went up to Harry to congratulate him as well.  
  
"That was a great play Harry," Cho said, giggling. "The look on Krum's face was just too funny."  
  
"Thanks Cho," he said beaming at her.  
  
At that point, Krum, having recovered from his fall came up to Harry and Ron. He looked battered and was limping slightly, probably from having fallen hard on his left leg, injuring it badly but not breaking it.  
  
"You two pulled off a brilliant play," Krum said to both of them, laughing slightly. "I didn't think you'd ever think of throving the Quaffle at me. I vos expecting the bludgers but never the Quaffle."  
  
"Thanks," Ron said, turning red in embarrassment. Such high praise coming from his favourite Quidditch player, even if he had taken Hermione to the Yule Ball, was very flattering to Ron.  
  
"Thank you - You were great yourself," Harry replied and the two seekers shook hands in front of the crowd.  
  
"Thanks Harry, I look forvard to the next time ve play," said Krum before turning and limping off the field towards the Slytherin locker rooms.  
  
Fred and George finally broke through the crowd and enthusiastically went over to them.  
  
"That was bloody brilliant!" Fred exclaimed.  
  
"Yes, I think we should have a party even though it we tied with Slytherin," George added.  
  
"Why?" Harry asked with a confused look on his face. "We didn't win."  
  
"We know," said the twins. "But you two stopped them from winning so you deserve a break."  
  
"Even ickle Ronnikins deserves a break every now and then," George teased.  
  
"Especially if he helped snatch victory from the Slytherins," Fred added grinning.  
  
Ron turned the colour of his hair and Harry started to walk towards the locker room to change out of his robes as the crowd dispersed. Ron and the Weasley twins followed and afterwards, they walked back to the Gryffindor tower for their party, the Weasley twins sneaking off along the way to get their party supplies from Hogsmeade.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When Harry and Ron arrived at the common room, it was surprisingly quiet. Normally everyone would be very excited at the thought of a party but instead everyone was gathered around Lavender, who was crying and Hermione was making an attempt to comfort her.  
  
"What happened?" Harry asked, breaking through the circle of students  
  
"Parvati didn't wake up this morning," Hermione explained since Lavender was too shaken to say anything.  
  
"So? Maybe she just wanted to sleep in for a day," Harry reasoned. "It's still early in the afternoon."  
  
"It's - not - like - her," Lavender sobbed. "She was - well - yesterday. She - also never - misses - any - Quidditch games - against - Slytherin. But - this - week - she's been - sleeping in - more often - and - hasn't been - eating much - either."  
  
"No wonder it was so quiet in Divination," Ron commented, receiving an elbow from Harry.  
  
"Ow - what - ," Ron started to say but he noticed Hermione glaring at him and shut up immediately.  
  
"That explains why she hasn't been showing up to classes in the morning," Hermione said.  
  
Just the Parvati came downstairs in her pyjamas, looking fatigued, only to be greeted with stares from everyone in the common room.  
  
"Why is everyone staring at me?" she asked.  
  
There was silence in the room for a while but eventually Harry summoned enough courage to explain, "Because you just missed the Quidditch game and have been sleeping in all week."  
  
"Sorry - I've just been very tired lately," she replied. "How did the game go?"  
  
"It wasn't going well at first and we were getting killed by the Slytherins but I caught the snitch and we tied with them."  
  
"Would everyone stop staring at Parvati and acting as if she died," said Fred as he entered the common room with George, both of them laden with Honeydukes sweets butterbeers, pumpkin fizz and some of their own jokes.  
  
"Yeah, let's party!" George exclaimed and the common room broke into chatter as everyone moved towards the twins as they started handing out the party supplies.  
  
Lavender had stopped crying and moved to greet Parvati while Hermione went back to join Harry and Ron, who were still standing there, apparently ignored by everyone in the room.  
  
"I'm going off to see Dumbledore to give him the Daily Prophet article then I'm going to the library," said Hermione, " - I need to do some research. Care to join me?"  
  
"But Hermione, what about the party?" Ron whined. "You're always doing something at the library. Our homework isn't due until Monday anyway and why does Dumbledore need to see the Daily Prophet? He probably already knows all about it."  
  
"Exactly why I want to see what he's going to do about it and at any rate, I need to get started on my work. "  
  
Ron thought about it for a moment, "I think I'll pass, I want to join the party - I did earn it after all."  
  
"Suit yourself - The article is only about your best friend being accused of being a traitor," said Hermione hotly before she wheeled about and started heading towards the portrait.  
  
"Wait Hermione," Harry called after her. "I'll join you - If the article concerns me, I want to know what Dumbledore is going to do about it and I need to get some work done too."  
  
Ron rolled his eyes, "Harry - you're starting to turn into Hermione. Really, I think you both need to take a break before you burn yourself out."  
  
With that, Ron joined the party and Harry and Hermione, shaking their heads, walked out of the common room, heading in the direction of Dumbledore's office.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Arriving at Dumbledore's office, Harry and Hermione were surprised to find Walter standing at the bottom of the staircase. The gargoyle was already moved aside - apparently Walter had already said the password and was on his way to see Dumbledore as well.  
  
Upon hearing footsteps behind him, Walter turned around abruptly, his hand going to his dagger at his side. However he saw who it was and relaxed slightly, his stern face breaking into a friendly smile.  
  
"Good afternoon Miss Granger - Mr. Potter," he said. "Going to see the headmaster about the Daily Prophet article?"  
  
"How - " Hermione began, with a confounded look on her face.  
  
"I saw the Daily Prophet this morning," Walter explained. "I assumed that you'd want to see the headmaster about it since it concerns Mr. Potter."  
  
Despite the seriousness of the situation, Harry couldn't help laughing slightly at Hermione's facial expression after Walter finished explanation. Harry's laughter caused Hermione to abruptly snap out of her confounded trance and glare at Harry, who quickly stopped laughing.  
  
"Why did you beat Malfoy so badly earlier?" Hermione questioned Walter.  
  
"Because he is my prisoner and he got out of line. Prisoners who get out of line should be taught who's in charge," Walter replied coldly.  
  
"But it's so brutal," she argued. "They're humans and deserve to be treated like humans. - Besides if you treat them like that, they'll hate you."  
  
Walter smiled evilly. "That's why I have my skeletons around - they're lifeless and have no objection to mistreating those animals. - I can care less if the prisoners hate me or not - They committed a crime so as far as I'm concerned, they have forfeited their rights as humans."  
  
"But - "  
  
"That's enough Miss Granger - Come - I'm sure the headmaster would like to explain what he plans to do about the situation you wanted to talk to him about," Walter said softly, motioning them to go up the stairs.  
  
Hermione stopped trying to reason with Walter as her concern for Harry's situation overrode her uneasiness over the way the prisoners were treated so they went up the stairs with Walter following.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Walter opened the door when they arrived at Dumbledore's office and allowed them to enter. Dumbledore was sitting at his desk, looking deep in thought.  
  
"My apologies for interrupting your private time headmaster," Walter said respectfully.  
  
"It's perfectly alright Professor Laikov," replied Dumbledore. "The fact that Harry and Miss Granger are here must mean that you wish to discuss the Daily Prophet article this morning?"  
  
"Yes, that's right headmaster," said Walter. "I just wanted to request your permission, as head of the Order, to do something about it."  
  
Dumbledore smiled; his eyes twinkling in the firelight, "Just leave it alone - Rita Skeeter won't be able to do any harm to us."  
  
"Headmaster?" Walter asked, confused about Dumbledore's course of action. "Could you please explain?"  
  
"Last year - Rita Skeeter wrote several articles similar to the one you saw this morning. They all had minimal effect. - She can't do anymore harm that she already has so let her do as she pleases."  
  
"As you wish," Walter replied. "I will take my leave now."  
  
Walter turned about and left, leaving Harry and Hermione alone with Dumbledore.  
  
"But what about Harry?" Hermione asked once Walter had left the room. "The ministry could throw him in Azkaban."  
  
"Miss Granger - I assure you that Harry is in no danger so please leave everything to me," Dumbledore replied. "I know you're concerned with his safety, but trust me on this - As long as Harry stays here at Hogwarts - he will be safe and nothing Rita Skeeter says will change that."  
  
Harry was wondering if Dumbledore knew if there was something wrong with Parvati as she was acting very strangely all week but he didn't bother to say anything.  
  
*Maybe it's just temporary and she's just sick, * Harry thought.  
  
"If you have nothing else to bring forth, then I will leave you two to go about your business," said Dumbledore. "Please don't worry yourself over such a trivial matter as Rita Skeeter."  
  
Harry or Hermione weren't completely satisfied with Dumbledore's answer but it was clear that the conversation was over so they turned around and quickly made their way towards the library, wondering what else could go wrong during the school year.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A/N: That was a rather fun chapter to write. I have a vague idea about what I should do for the next chapter, but we'll see. It'll either be Christmas or what happens in between now and then. When I get to February and Valentine's Day, you'll find out who gets paired up with whom.  
  
Mikala: They'll probably go at another mission sometime in the next 4 chapters; As for Malfoy, I didn't liked him so sorry if he's evil.  
  
Angelis: Thank you for reviewing each time. It's always nice to know people are reading my story.  
  
Orion: Wow. I'm honoured that you added me to your favourite author's list. Your stories are great, even though I'm a Harry/Hermione fan.  
  
Quis: Thanks for the review; hope this was quick enough for you.  
  
Anja: Well, the point of this fic is to read it in one go, though I guess reading it in fragments would work too.  
  
Baybee05: Your review sounds almost like one Mikala put up a while ago, but hehe, I'm glad you like my fic. As for Harry/Hermione or Draco/Ginny, keep reading to figure out who's paired with whom since I don't want to ruin the romance part for everyone.  
  
Voidhawc: You make a valid point so I put Malfoy in the dungeons in Walter's capable care. Bwahahaha.  
  
Gerhrh: Hey, I try to hurry up with these chapters, but making sure almost everything is perfect takes a while.  
  
Uniqueidividual: Thanks for reviewing, I read your story so check my review.  
  
Gardengnomez: Thanks for reviewing. If you want to be a beta-reader, here are several questions that I'd like to ask you first. If you can answer them to my satisfaction then I'll let you be a beta-reader. These are the same standards I put for my other beta-reader and she's done a great job of following them so its only fair I put forth the same standards for you.  
  
How fast can you proofread & get it back to me? Can you do it in less than 24 hours of sending you the chapter? How accurately can you catch errors?  
  
If anyone else wants to beta-read and can meet the standards above, I'll e- mail you the next chapter and let you beta-read. 


	23. Author's Note

Author's Note:  
  
As of today, October 14, 2002, I have decided to stop posting on this story until further notice. I have NOT and REFUSE to abandon everyone who has read my story and stop writing.  
  
The reason for this is not because of the harsh content of the flame that I have just recently received (from a person who OBVIOUSLY doesn't read fanfiction) but because I wish to improve upon my style. In a sense, I'm like Hermione and am somewhat of a perfectionist so I'm taking time off so that I can just look back and fix stuff, improve on my diction and add some variety in it as the flamer pointed out. I don't mind flames; I just take what's worth getting out of it. Who knows, maybe it'll be better than it was before. So whoever the flamer was, sorry, but I'm not going to stop writing fanfiction just because you flamed me.  
  
If you have any concerns about change of plot, don't worry, I won't change the plot but when I fix this & upload the next chapter (which is finished btw), howbeit, I hope more people will read the improved version.  
  
Despite some useful content in the flame, I STRESS that the flamer is WRONG is saying that Fanfiction is a waste of time. I will agree that we are taking someone else's concepts and shaping them as we please, however Fanfiction is a form of expressing one's ideas and as I have noticed in most of the Fanfiction that I have read, some of which, I think is better than my own, such as NAPPA's Septanic Duelling story, there are original characters, each of which could have their own story to tell. So I encourage everyone who is writing Fanfiction to continue doing so and if you happen to stumble among some idea or concept that sells, write a book on it and who knows, you may become as popular as J.K. Rowling.  
  
I would also like to point something else out. Although pieces of work such as 'The Iliad' by Homer and 'War and Peace' by Tolstoy are great pieces of literature, even great authors such as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Mark Twain, and Charles Dickens have read the other works of literature and based their writing style on it. Arthur Conan Doyle basing his Sherlock Holmes stories on Edgar Alan Poe's suspense works being one example. If I'm not mistaken, I believe Poe has one short story that looks similar to Sherlock Holmes in the way it is presented.  
  
Granted, I'm not the best writer alive but it's worth trying. Writing is just like every other skill, with practise, one can get better at it. Whether or not everyone agrees with what I have said so far is up to the individual but I do ask that you consider it before deciding to agree or disagree with me.  
  
Finally, I will change my policy about the beta-readers. I don't care if it takes you a week to proofread as long as it's done well. If everyone volunteers, hey, I'll send all of you the new chapter and maybe new ideas will be suggested for Christmas, which WILL be chapter 23 out of 36.  
  
I thank you all for your loyal support and I hope to resume posting by the end of October.  
  
Sincerely,  
  
Tassadar 


	24. Chapter 22: Mortuorum

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling.  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 22: Mortuorum  
  
December soon came around and Hogwarts found itself covered in thick layers of snow. The holidays would start in another week and all the students were anxious to go home, however Harry would stay at school over the holidays like he always did each year since he knew he wouldn't be welcome at home.  
  
The dungeons were freezing as always during this time of year and that made their potions and Dark Art classes somewhat unbearable. At least in potions, they were able to huddle near their hot cauldrons, but their Dark Arts class was another matter since there weren't any forms of heating. On occasion though, Walter would be nice enough to warm up the room a little by creating a small fire in the centre of it and skeletons would stand around the room carrying the red fireballs that they used in the Halloween performance.  
  
One particularly chilly morning, Harry, Ron and Hermione were spending their time down in the dungeons for potions with the Slytherins. Even though Malfoy was still in prison away from everyone else, that didn't stop Snape from giving Harry a hard time and taking points away from Gryffindor. Today they would be learning how to brew a Mortuorum Potion.  
  
"Can anyone tell me what the Mortuorum Potion does?" Snape asked, looking around the room.  
  
Hermione's hand naturally went up but he ignored it, turning his attention to Harry who was partnered with Lavender Brown since Parvati hadn't shown up to class.  
  
"POTTER!" he said suddenly.  
  
Harry looked around uncertainly, glancing at Hermione who was mouthing something that looked like vampires.  
  
"Uh - vampires," he whispered.  
  
"I expected better from such a - ," Snape paused. "unique student. I can see that Professor Sepet's special treatment of you has made you complacent. Five points from Gryffindor for not answering properly Potter, and an additional five for helping him Miss Granger."  
  
"WHAT!?" Hermione exclaimed exasperatedly. "I DIDN'T SAY ANYTHING!"  
  
"An additional five points from Gryffindor for that outburst," said Snape and Hermione immediately gave up all attempts to try to argue with him. "Now let's try again. Can you answer what ingredients are needed for the potion?"  
  
Hermione's hand once again went up and Snape disregarded it, calling on Lavender instead.  
  
"Miss Brown. Answer the question."  
  
Lavender began to wry her fingers nervously as she attempted to pick her brain for the non-existent answer.  
  
"I don't know," she stuttered.  
  
"Disgraceful. Ten points from Gryffindor."  
  
Snape shifted his unfeeling gaze around the room while continuing to lecture in barely a whisper. "Since Miss Brown wasn't able to answer the question, I will inform you that Mortuorum potion is used to repel or kill vampires. You mix a pinch of powdered Unicorn's horn, ground garlic, ten milliliters of quick silver and finally the blood of a human. The blood is a very important part of the potion. The more of it you put in, the more likely it will affect the vampire."  
  
The students furiously wrote down their notes on parchment as Snape continued his lecture for the first hour of class, giving them more information about the effects of the potion on vampires and how it would kill them if they drank too much of it. Then during the second hour of the class, Snape paired them up, so they could make the potion.  
  
Snape handed out a dagger to each pair of students so they would be able to add the blood to their potion. Afterwards, he return to sweeping around the classroom as usual, looking over their shoulder and watching them measure out each ingredient, scrutinizing over the Griffindor's every now and then.  
  
Harry worked with Lavender and he measured out the ingredients before dumping them in their cauldron while Lavender stirred. However when it came time to add the blood, Lavender was looking pale in the face.  
  
"I can't do this," she told Harry, holding the dagger over her other hand, chewing on her lower lip.  
  
Harry wasn't paying attention though; he was looking over at Hermione and Ron. Hermione had taken out her own dagger and cut her hand with it, letting her blood flow into the potion.  
  
As her blood flowed into the potion, Ron's face grew more and more concerned, as did Harry's but then Hermione did something very strange. She wiped her dagger and brought it back to her hand. Ron put out a hand to stop her but she shook it off and pressed the flat side of the dagger's blade to her injured hand that was still hovering over the potion, muttering some words that Harry couldn't hear. Her blade started to glow a blue-silver colour and when it rescinded, her hand looked the way it was just before she cut it.  
  
"Harry," he heard Lavender's voice say, snapping him out of his trance.  
  
"What?" he replied, making a mental note to ask Hermione about her dagger later.  
  
"Add your blood, I don't want to cut myself."  
  
Harry sighed and took the dagger from her, preparing to cut himself with it.  
  
"POTTER!" Snape snarled. "Give the dagger back to Miss Brown and have her add her blood to the potion."  
  
"But she doesn't want to do it," he protested.  
  
"That will be five points from Gryffindor for your impertinence and it'll be ten more if Miss Brown doesn't add her blood."  
  
Harry handed the dagger back to a fretful looking Lavender, who took it. She looked away, holding the dagger near her other hand over the cauldron. He could see her hand was shaking and she let out a cry when she cut herself, dropping the dagger into the cauldron at the same time. Nothing happened but that didn't stop Snape from chastising them.  
  
"MISS BROWN!" Snape snapped. "You were only supposed to add your blood to it not your dagger as well. Ten points from Gryffindor."  
  
"HOW COULD YOU BE SUCH A COLD PERSON!" Hermione shouted exasperatedly. "CAN'T YOU SEE THAT SHE DOESN'T WANT TO ADD HER BLOOD?"  
  
Snape paused for a reply, apparently taken aback by her outburst but his face twisted in anger at her words. "That will be thirty points from Gryffindor for your outburst Miss Granger. NOW SIT DOWN!"  
  
Hermione sat down defeated and Ron attempted to comfort her.  
  
*I should be the one cheering her up. * He thought, disheartened at watching his two friends interact.  
  
Harry felt Lavender fall to the floor and he quickly turned his attention to her. Pulling out his wand, he healed her injured hand and revived her.  
  
"What happened?" Lavender asked when she came to.  
  
"You fainted from losing too much blood I guess," Harry explained, helping her up. "I healed your injury so you won't pass out anymore."  
  
"Oh - Thanks," she giggled.  
  
Harry rolled his eyes and continued to work on his potion for the rest of the class, lost in his thoughts as they drifted to Hermione.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
After potions class, the three of them went to the Great Hall for lunch.  
  
"UGH!" Hermione exclaimed huffily. "I can't believe we lost thirty points my outburst but Snape shouldn't have forced her to add her blood to that potion."  
  
"Calm down Hermione," said Harry. "I took care of it and everything turned out alright, didn't it?"  
  
"But Lavender fainted."  
  
"Listen to Harry. He said he took care of it so why are you so worried?" Ron chimed in.  
  
"Oh I don't know. Probably I'm still vexed about losing those points."  
  
"C'mon Hermione, you can easily gain those back by answering a few questions in Transfiguration," Harry reassured her. "It can't get as bad as first year when we lost 150 points for Gryffindor and look on the bright side, you didn't get detention from Snape."  
  
Hermione's mouth turned up in a cheerful smile at his words. "Thanks Harry."  
  
"You're welcome," he said, grinning.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The Great Hall was full of laughter and voices when they entered it. The trio made their way over to the Gryffindor table where everyone was already eating.  
  
"Hermione - Harry!" they heard Ginny call. "Over here!"  
  
They went over to Ginny who handed Harry a letter and Hermione a copy of the Daily Prophet.  
  
"What's this about?" Harry asked, looking at the letter which bore a red seal on it that looked unfamiliar.  
  
"I don't know - two school owls came and dropped them off," Ginny answered.  
  
"Let's open it and find out," Hermione suggested.  
  
Ginny moved over slightly so they could sit down and look at their mail.  
  
"What's the letter about?" Ron asked. "Open it."  
  
"Nothing," Harry replied, attempting to put away the letter, but Ron snatched it away from him and read it aloud.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Dear Mr. Potter,  
  
Please meet me in the dungeons with Miss Granger at 9:00 this evening. Come alone. There is something I wish to discuss with you both.  
  
Count Sepet  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Why does Sepet want to see you two alone?"  
  
"How are we supposed to know?" answered Harry as Ron gave him back the letter.  
  
Harry quickly put away the letter and gave Hermione a questioning look. "Do you think we should go?"  
  
"I don't know. It could be a trap," she pointed out.  
  
"Sepet hasn't done anything yet," said Ron.  
  
"Nothing?" she scoffed. "You think attacking Alicia counts as nothing? What about Parvati?"  
  
"Hey, Alicia's almost fully recovered but you're right. I'd bet Sepet probably has something to do with Parvati's problem too. So you think we shouldn't go?" Harry said.  
  
"We have to go because Sepet is a professor but we should be careful," Hermione warned. "If Sepet decides to hurt us, we'll need to have our wits around us. I expect Walter might know something about this. We should go see him."  
  
"Sure," Harry agreed. "We can talk to him later, after Care of Magical Creatures"  
  
"We're having that with the Ravenclaws right?" Hermione asked.  
  
Harry took out his schedule from his bag and looked at it. "Yeah, we do. I wonder what kind of creature Hagrid will be introducing us today."  
  
"Probably something dangerous. His idea of a tame creature is something that hasn't bitten or eaten anyone in a month," said Hermione sarcastically.  
  
Ron and Harry laughed at her comment but they were rudely interrupted by a voice from behind that sounded all too familiar from its accent.  
  
"Hullo Herm-own-ninny," they heard Viktor say.  
  
Harry and Ron gritted their teeth at the sound of Viktor's voice and Hermione turned around to face Krum.  
  
"Hullo Viktor," said Hermione, forcing a smile.  
  
"I vos vondering if you vould like to join me for a vaak this effening after dinner," Krum said, coming to sit down in between Hermione and an increasingly miffed Harry.  
  
Hermione put on her best apologetic face. "I'm sorry Viktor but I have a meeting to go to."  
  
"Does it haff anything to do vith Dumblydore?"  
  
"No - for your information Harry and I need to see Sepet," Hermione stated while trying to stop Ron from pounding Krum into the ground with his fists.  
  
"Then it has somesing to do vith our duelling class. Vhy don't I come vith you?"  
  
"Because Sepet wanted to see only us," Hermione explained, giving Harry a look that clearly said 'get me out of here.'  
  
"Hermione - " Harry interrupted. "We need to go to class or we'll be late."  
  
"All right," Hermione said, putting the Daily Prophet in her bag and gathering her books before exiting the Great Hall with Ron and Harry.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Thanks Harry," said Hermione once they were outside. "Really - I wish Viktor would leave me alone."  
  
"No problem Hermione. Ron and I enjoy keeping Viktor away from you - Right Ron?" Harry said, giving Ron a little nudge with his elbow.  
  
"Huh? Oh - Right," Ron agreed and Hermione sighed, rolling her eyes.  
  
"What?" Ron asked with a clueless expression on his face.  
  
"Nothing Ron," Harry laughed and they continued to walk down the sloping lawns, which were now covered with snow, towards Hagrid's hut near the edge of the Forbidden Forest.  
  
They could see Hagrid standing outside his hut long before they even reached it due to his large stature and several students were already gathered around him.  
  
"Hullo yeh three," Hagrid greeted them loudly. "Gather 'round."  
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione took a seat on the grass, huddling close together so that they could stay warm. The other students joined them soon and Hagrid led them around the back of his hut.  
  
"Right, follow me! This way, quickly!" he yelled loudly as they went around his hut towards the Forbidden Forest.  
  
Harry hoped that Hagrid wouldn't lead them into the forest since his experience in it during his years at Hogwarts wasn't at all pleasant, especially Harry and Ron's encounter with Aragog their second year.  
  
They stopped just short of the forest where two fires were roaring, providing warmth. Many students breathed a sight of relief when they stopped since none of them wanted to enter the forest at all.  
  
A large grayish-purple creature standing on four thumbed feet with two horns. The creature looked fierce and menacing, and yanked at its chain that was tethered to a tree trying to get at the students so it seemed, but Hagrid went over and stroked it gently.  
  
The creature snapped at Hagrid's hand but Hagrid only chuckled merrily. "Bless my soul, he knows his mummy."  
  
"Uh, Professor Hagrid," one of the Ravenclaws said. "What is that?"  
  
"Oh I'm sorry - this 'ere is a Graphorn," Hagrid explained happily. "beau'iful, isn't he?"  
  
"Will it attack us?" another student asked, eyeing the Graphorn fearfully.  
  
" O' course not. He's about as 'armless as a field mouse," said Hagrid only to receive awkward looks from several students. "Firs' thing yeh should know abou' Graphorns is, their skin is thicker than a dragon's and they're incredibly resistant ter magic."  
  
If the students weren't panicking before, they were now and many of them found themselves going for their wands, just in case.  
  
"I've read about those," Hermione stated matter-of-factly. "Don't they live in the mountains of Europe?"  
  
"That's right, know yer stuff Hermione," Hagrid roared. "Ten points ter Gryffindor."  
  
"But aren't they dangerous? I've read that even mountain trolls can get hurt from them."  
  
"Yeh've got your information wrong," Hagrid insisted. "They're not gonna hurt anyone."  
  
Hagrid had spoken too soon for at that moment, the Graphorn broke free of its chain and attacked the nearest student, which happened to be a female Ravenclaw. She let out a shriek and rolled aside as the Graphorn impaled the ground where she was with its horns.  
  
The other students were now scattering quickly but the Ravenclaw Order members made an attempt to stop it.  
  
Cho and Terry Boot both cast stunning spells, but the spells just rebounded off the Graphorn's tough skin and went off into the air.  
  
Engraged by the attack, the Graphorn tackled Terry Boot, breaking his ribs just as Hagrid grabbed it around the neck and tried to pull it off Terry.  
  
"Ron - Hermione," Harry commanded. "Get everyone out of here."  
  
"What about you?" Hermione called back.  
  
"Don't worry about me - now GO!"  
  
Ron and Hermione quickly went off to help the students, who were too shocked to move, leaving Harry to help Hagrid.  
  
By then, Hagrid had lost his struggle with the Graphorn and was thrown off but Terry was free, being dragged away slowly by Cho who was trying to avoid being attacked.  
  
Harry drew out his wand and pointed it at the nearest fire. "Accersitus Vulcanus!"  
  
A red beam of light shot out of his wand and into the fire. The fire roared increased in intensity as the spell summoning the fire guardian took effect. Eventually it rose to a height of about 6 feet before taking a humanoid figure made entirely of flames.  
  
*Your commands master? * it said.  
  
"Keep the Graphorn away from the students," Harry commanded.  
  
The fire guardian walked through the snow, melting it as it went towards the Graphorn.  
  
Feeling the warmth coming from the fire guardian, the Graphorn's natural instincts kicked in and it slowly backed away from it, ignoring the other students.  
  
Helping Hagrid up, who was scratched in various places from having wrestled with the Graphorn, Harry allowed the fire guardian to care of the Graphorn while making sure there weren't any other students in immediate danger.  
  
"HARRY!" Hermione shouted, coming back to see if anymore students were left behind. "Are you alright?"  
  
Harry nodded. "I'm fine - take care of Hagrid."  
  
"What about you?"  
  
He didn't respond and just pointed at the fire guardian who was still driving the creature back towards the forest.  
  
"Won't that burn the forest?" Hermione asked, using a levitation spell to help make Hagrid easier to drag to his hut.  
  
"Nope, I'll make sure it doesn't - just take care of Hagrid and go get McGonagall."  
  
"Oh all right," Hermione conceded, dragging Hagrid away.  
  
The fire guardian had now driven the creature close enough to the forest where it wouldn't do anymore harm so Harry cast force field spells around it, containing the enraged animal.  
  
"Enough - return," Harry ordered the Fire Guardian.  
  
The fire guardian obeyed and turned into a swirling pillar of flame, which streamed back to the fire from whence it came.  
  
The Graphorn was grunting and banging its head against the force fields, but unlike Harry's previous encounter with Nobert, Harry felt his barriers strain under the impact of each blow. Fortunately, the quadruped animal soon tired itself out and collapsed in exhaustion, much to Harry's delight since no more students were in danger and he could relax without the pain inflicted on him each time the Graphorn had attacked the barrier.  
  
Since the force fields could only be maintained while he was within a certain distance of the creature, Harry didn't have much of a choice but to remain there for a few hours with the sleeping creature.  
  
*I wish Hagrid would find a creature that wasn't nearly so dangerous like the Hippogriff, Buckbeak wasn't too bad, or those Blast-Ended Skrewts. Then it wouldn't be so much work trying to keep them under control * Harry thought, sitting in the snow near one of the fires which was dying down since no firewood had been added.  
  
A chilling breeze blew through the area and Harry drew his robes tightly around him, trying to keep warm. The snow where the fire guardian had melted and sunlight from the setting sun was reflecting off of the pools of water surrounded by mounds of snow.  
  
Not wanting to be alone, Harry pointed his wand at the nearest pool of water and summoned the water guardian. The water shot up like a fountain from the pool and started to form the shape of a head with long wavy hair that fell down to where the waist would be. Following this, the figure filled out, forming a shapely woman and finally two slender legs took shape, completing the water guardian.  
  
*Good afternoon Harry * the water guardian said. *Any success? *  
  
"With what?"  
  
The water guardian giggled slightly *Why Hermione of course. *  
  
"No, I haven't. I think Ron is still trying to go for her and I think she likes him too."  
  
*But you won't know if you don't try anything *  
  
"I guess, but this morning in potions, Ron was trying to comfort her after one of our classmates refused to add her blood to a potion and it looked like she was responding to him."  
  
*That may not mean anything. Ron is her best friend too, wouldn't you be appreciative if your best friend tried to console you when you needed it? *  
  
"You're right," said Harry, smiling weakly.  
  
*Well, if you're not willing to date Hermione, you could always date me. * the guardian said playfully.  
  
Harry was shocked by the suggestion but found it very amusing that the guardian would even consider such an idea. "How does that work? I wouldn't be able to hug you or anything."  
  
*Oh its not that hard, you just summon all the guardians and just combine us. *  
  
"That easy? No incantation or anything?" Harry asked.  
  
*Oh, you'll have to tell us which one is in control when we're in our human form. Just say the word 'Dominatus' then the name of the element. *  
  
"I'll keep that in mind if I can't find a date at the next ball, whenever that is," said Harry mockingly.  
  
*I bet you I'm better looking than most girls at this school are in my human form. * the guardian challenged.  
  
"For a guardian that is supposed to be obeying her master, you sure are rebellious."  
  
*I'm only trying to help. You can't always be so self-sacrificing for the good of others. You deserve to be as happy just as much as everyone else. *  
  
"Thanks."  
  
Eventually, he saw the familiar shapes of Ron and Hermione followed by Professor McGonagall running towards him and the water guardian took her leave, disappearing back into the pool of water.  
  
"Mr. Potter - how - did you," McGonagall said, almost speechless from shock but she quickly gathered herself and became torn between anger and concern. "Why are you still out here? You very well know that the Dark Lord has risen. It's not safe out here. Get to the Hospital Wing and have Madam Pomfrey take a look at you. Mr. Weasley - Miss Granger will accompany you. I'll take over from here."  
  
"But - "  
  
"Don't question me. Go before I dock fifty points from my own house," she threatened. "I trust I don't need to remind you that we need the points."  
  
*The barriers will go down once I'm out of range but I suppose it doesn't matter anymore since it's asleep. * he reasoned, looking back at the Graphorn which wasn't moving at all within its little pen.  
  
Harry nodded and headed back to the castle with Ron and Hermione who immediately started grilling him for answers.  
  
"That was a great show mate!" Ron exclaimed. "What was that thing you summoned?"  
  
"A fire guardian."  
  
"Harry - you could have been hurt," said Hermione, her voice full of concern.  
  
Harry gave her a lopsided grin. "Hey it turned out alright, didn't it?"  
  
"Still - McGonagall has a point, you shouldn't be out, especially this late at night," she insisted.  
  
"What could possibly go wrong? Vol - I mean You-Know-Who isn't going to attack Hogwarts."  
  
"There's a death eater at this school remember?"  
  
"Yeah mate, you should be careful," Ron concurred. "That death eater is good, whoever it is."  
  
"Great - now I get to spend the rest of the day in the Hospital Wing," Harry said unenthusiastically.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
It was about 5:00 by the time they arrived at the Hospital Wing. Madam Pomfrey went over to meet them and they saw Terry's figure lying on one of the beds, asleep.  
  
"Mr. Potter," she said. "Back again? Have a seat on one of the beds. I'll be with you shortly. Your friends may stay this time since you won't be here for long from the looks of you."  
  
Harry groaned but nevertheless walked over and sat down on the nearest bed. Madam Pomfrey emerged from her office with several potions soon enough and came over to administer to Harry.  
  
"Your wrists are like ice," she commented, holding his wrist so that she could take his blood pressure. "Where were you?"  
  
"Outside, battling a Graphorn," Hermione explained for him.  
  
"How on Earth did you ever survive?"  
  
Harry sighed. The 'million-questions' routine was getting a little redundant. "I had a little help from a friend."  
  
"I don't think I'll ever get the truth out of you so I'll just treat you and you can go to dinner since there's no need to keep you in here."  
  
Harry couldn't help from smiling just a little. He was just glad that he didn't have to spend the night in the hospital wing.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Soon dinnertime rolled around and Madam Pomfrey released him so he could go to the Great Hall to eat. The students were just starting to file in and Harry, Ron and Hermione took a seat at the Gryffindor table next to Dean and Seamus who were engaging in a conversation about Quidditch.  
  
"No, you're not supposed to fly like that. The 'Hawkshead Attacking Formation' is where you fly in a v formation with one chaser ahead of the other two," Dean was saying.  
  
"Shut up Dean, you don't know what you're talking about," Seamus said.  
  
"Dean is right," said Ron, taking sides. "I've read 'Quidditch Throughout the Ages' and that's what it says."  
  
Harry looked around to the teacher's table where two skeletons carrying swords and shields were flanking it on each side. Dumbledore was chatting merrily with Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick was trying to tell a joke that he heard a long time ago to Professor Sprout but at the end of the table, Snape and Walter were conversing seriously about something though Harry was wondering more about where Sepet was.  
  
After about five minutes, Walter stood up and motioned to his skeletons who fell into formation as he walked through the centre of the room towards the two large doors of the Great Hall, getting several stares from the students. However, the doors burst open before they got to them, revealing Lucius Malfoy, Sepet, and several ministry wizards with their wands drawn.  
  
All the chatter in the Great Hall ceased as all of the students turned to look in their direction.  
  
"By order of the Ministery of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, I hereby place Headmaster Albus Dumbledore under arrest for the crime of attempting to free the Death Eaters of Azkaban and committing a serious act of treason against the Wizarding world," Lucius announced. "Arrest him."  
  
Sepet strode through the center of the Great Hall towards the teacher's table, his long cape flowing behind him as he walked.  
  
"My lord?" Walter questioned as he passed.  
  
"Not now Walter. Business comes first," Sepet replied quickly, continuing forward.  
  
Sepet walked up to Dumbledore at the teacher's table. "Headmaster, I must place you under arrest for your attempt to free the Death Eaters of Azkaban."  
  
Dumbledore nodded and stood up. "Very well, I shall accompany you Professor. I never expected you to follow them, but I was mistaken."  
  
"That no longer matters headmaster," said Sepet, looking at Dumbledore with a cold, unfeeling gaze. "Now come along."  
  
Dumbledore, escorted by Sepet, walked around the teacher's table and to where Lucius was standing at the entrance. "Now that you have me, what can I do for you Lucius?"  
  
"You know very well what I'm here for," Lucius spat. "I'm here for you and my son, Draco. I hear that this.. 'thing,' he said loathingly, pointing at Walter, "put him in the dungeons and tortured him for killing Karkaroff."  
  
"Overwhelming evidence was found incriminating him of the murder," Dumbledore pointed out. "but we didn't torture him, no."  
  
"I don't care for your lies - you will release him immediately."  
  
"As you wish - Professor Laikov, please see that Mr. Malfoy is released from prison then I will accompany Lucius peacefully."  
  
If looks could kill, Lucius would have been vaporized into thin air as Walter was giving him a vengeful look that clearly said that he would get his comeuppance when the time came but Walter bowed to Dumbledore and left through the door near the teacher's table.  
  
"Chain him," Lucius commanded and two wizards shackled Dumbledore's hands and took his wand.  
  
"I told you Lucius three years ago - " Dumbledore said. "Those who believe in me will still be able to receive my assistance and I assure you that you will never get rid of me completely. That has been my promise and I shall fulfill it."  
  
"Bold words Albus, but where we're sending you - not even Merlin would be able to find you."  
  
At that moment, Walter returned with Draco, who looked eagerly at his father.  
  
"Go back to your classmates Draco. You're safe now without this - traitor - around. I will be replacing him."  
  
Draco smiled evilly at Dumbledore. "I knew you wouldn't last old man. Now we'll finally get a headmaster who'll teach us what we need to know."  
  
Dumbledore glanced at Malfoy as he walked back towards the Slytherin table, "Mr. Malfoy, I doubt Headmistress McGonagall would allow you to learn the Dark Arts in class if that's what you were referring to. The Dark Arts is dangerous magic and delving too deeply into them could have dire consequences."  
  
"Enough of your high strung speeches Albus," Lucius said. "It's time to go - take him away."  
  
Dumbledore walked out of the Great Hall escorted by Sepet and the group of wizards before disappearing around the corner with Lucius close behind. Meanwhile, the Great Hall was silent but McGonagall eventually got the nerve to stand up and speak.  
  
"In Professor Dumbledore's absence, I will be your new headmistress and Professor Flitwick will be the new deputy headmaster, however, we will still teach our respective classes so you will still be having them with us," she said. "I ask that we all remain strong and I give you my assurances that the headmaster will return once this mistake has been sorted out. Please continue your meals."  
  
The students slowly went back to eating but the entire hall was silent as none of the students wanted to think of what would happen next. McGonagall and the other teachers looked very melancholy with the departure of their headmaster and Walter resumed his seat, the skeletons returning to their former positions. With Dumbledore gone, the order would have more trouble than ever trying to defeat Voldemort.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
After dinner was concluded, Harry, Ron and Hermione went back in silence to the Gryffindor tower with the rest of the students and upon arriving in their common room, Ron burst into a fit of rage.  
  
"I can't BELIEVE they would let someone like Lucius Malfoy remove Dumbledore," Ron shouted angrily. "and why didn't Walter do anything to stop Sepet?"  
  
"Ron, it can't be that bad," Harry said. "At least McGonagall is our headmistress and Walter can't just attack his employer."  
  
"Employer or not, Walter should have done something," Ron countered.  
  
"OH! Why didn't I think of that before!" Hermione exclaimed, causing both boys to look at her as if she had just lost her mind. "The Daily Prophet this morning. That's why it was delivered."  
  
She took out her copy of the Daily Prophet and sat down at one of the tables so that they could all read it.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Dumbledore Replaced as Headmaster  
  
This morning, the board of school governors approved a motion to remove the snide headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Albus Dumbledore, until an investigation can be conducted regarding his illegal activities in freeing the Death Eaters of Azkaban.  
  
"The board of governors have chosen me to take Albus into custody and I shall carry out the task honourably," says Lucius Malfoy, a member of the Ministry of Magic's Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures. "It is unfortunate that such a ...dreadful..thing should happen to him but it is a prudent move that we thought was necessary."  
  
As for the former headmaster, he comments that he had every intention of freeing the Death Eaters but not because he wishes to overthrow our Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge. Instead he says that they deserve every chance they can get however, it is in the record that these former Death Eaters were all tried and found guilty of their charges.  
  
Lucius Malfoy is scheduled to deliver the notice this evening and, with the help of Professor Sepet, the newest teacher and official of the International Ministry, remove the charlatan from his prestigious office.  
  
- Rita Skeeter  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"No wonder we didn't know about it," said Hermione. "It was all in the paper and we forgot to read it this morning."  
  
"Hey Hermione," Ron said. "I thought you took care of Rita Skeeter, so why is she still reporting?"  
  
"I let her go in London but apparently she's back to writing," said Hermione, putting away the Daily Prophet. "I'm thinking of spilling the beans on her now."  
  
"Sure, why not," Ron agreed. "She deserves to be ratted on."  
  
Harry shifted uncomfortably in his seat at the word, catching Hermione's attention. "Something wrong Harry?"  
  
He shook his head. "I don't like to be reminded of rats."  
  
"Oh come off it Harry, doesn't Pettigrew owe you some type of debt now since you spared his life?" Hermione asked.  
  
"I guess, but it still makes me uncomfortable."  
  
"Hey, it's almost 9:00 and we need to meet with Sepet," Hermione said, changing the subject quickly. "We should be going."  
  
"But that traitor betrayed Dumbledore," Ron fumed. "He'll probably turn Harry in to You-Know-Who too. Why should you even go?"  
  
"If we don't show up, he'll know we're on to him and he'll start watching us even more," she prompted.  
  
"Hermione's right," Harry agreed, getting up from the couch and stretching.  
  
"Fine," Ron pouted. "Go and get yourselves harmed while I stay here and worry about my best friend."  
  
"Don't you mean best friends?" Hermione asked, perking up slightly at Ron's statement.  
  
"Yeah - just go," said Ron, and he walked up to the dorm.  
  
Harry knew what Ron meant and it hurt him that he was more concerned about Hermione than him, yet considering Ron's crush on her, it wasn't surprising.  
  
Checking for their wands, the pair exited the common room and strolled down to the dungeons.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The halls in the dungeons were still cold and Harry and Hermione wrapped themselves tightly in their robes to keep warm. The torches lining the halls were lit and burning brightly but there didn't seem to be any warmth emitting from them.  
  
"I wonder where Sepet's office is. The torches don't seem to be giving off any heat," he commented, his hand fumbling with his wand in his robe pocket.  
  
"I remember that Walter said something about his office being further down this hall."  
  
"I just realized that we never asked Walter about Sepet," Harry said ruefully.  
  
"It's too late for that now. I guess we'll just have to find out what he wants for ourselves."  
  
The pair continued down the hall, the firelight lighting up the grey walls along the way. However in their attempts to find the door to Sepet's office, neither of them noticed a ripple in the walls behind them as if it were made of liquid.  
  
The ripple grew and a black portal formed at the center of it and a man wearing a black cape and a full black quilted jacket stepped out of it. The man's right hand reached for the sword that he carried at his side and he drew it quietly as he stalked the pair down the hall.  
  
Harry and Hermione were chatting about what would happen now that Dumbledore was gone when they sensed that there was someone following them.  
  
"Should we go vis - " Hermione was saying when Harry's hand went to his sword, drawing it and turning around just in time to deflect Sepet's heavy broadsword coming down on him.  
  
Seeing that his blow was deflected, Sepet smiled evilly and prepared to swing again while Hermione screamed and hastily fumbled for her wand and dagger. Harry went on the offense, trying to hit the Count but the Count brought his sword down low to block Harry's attack, aimed at his legs.  
  
"Harry - here catch," she said, throwing him his dagger, which flew through the air and Harry put out a hand to catch it but the Count was faster.  
  
The dagger flew into the Count's hand and he quickly used it to halt a sweeping blow coming at him diagonally across his chest. The Count followed up immediately and kicked Harry hard in the chest causing him to fly up against the wall, his sword falling to the ground at the same time.  
  
"Good reflexes Mr. Potter, but not fast enough. Ten points from Gryffindor," Sepet said, handing Hermione her dagger and sheathing his sword.  
  
"How come we didn't see you?" Hermione asked. "This hall was clear a moment ago and apparating isn't possible in Hogwarts."  
  
"Tsk tsk Miss Granger, for someone who reads as much as yourself, you should know there are more forms of magic than what you learn here," said the Count, who started walking down the hall again. "Follow me to my office if you please."  
  
Rubbing the area where the Count kicked him, Harry picked up his sword and sheathed it before running after Sepet with Hermione.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The Count's office was a lot larger than Walter's was and there were two armed skeletons standing guard on the inside of the chamber, next to the entrance as they entered.  
  
There was a large desk sitting off to the right and another large mirror, much like the mirror of Malikith, was facing them as they entered. However, Harry noted that only he and Hermione were visible in the mirror and that the Count's figure wasn't casting any form of reflection.  
  
Other than this, the chamber was scarcely furnished and the only other piece of furniture in the room was a four poster bed with the curtains drawn shut.  
  
Leading them to his desk, Sepet sat down and immediately began to address them.  
  
"First I would like to congratulate you on figuring out how your dagger works, Miss Granger, but the main reason I have called you here is that I have noticed something wrong with one of the students in the Gryffindor tower. Am I correct in saying this?" he asked.  
  
Harry and Hermione looked at each other and nodded.  
  
"Being the only two Order members in that house, I would like you to ask you a few questions, the first being who she is," said the Count, looking deeply into Hermione's eyes.  
  
Hermione's face softened slightly and her eyes glossed over as she answered. "Parvati Patil."  
  
"Good - now describe to me what type of behaviour she has shown or that you've noticed."  
  
Now it was Harry's turn to answer. "She's been sleeping in later than usual and rarely eats anything."  
  
"I see," the Count mused. "When does she wake up?"  
  
"Usually sometime before evening but after noon," Hermione said softly.  
  
"What does that have to do with anything?" Harry asked curiously.  
  
"That - Mr. Potter - is a very important detail for in my field of experience, even the smallest of details can be significant."  
  
"Why did you arrest Dumbledore earlier? He was innocent."  
  
"Whether or not the Headmastser is innocent, he is charged with a very serious crime and my orders were to arrest him. All cases of this sort must be treated alike regardless of my personal beliefs if justice is to be served. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some business to attend to," Sepet said, standing up. "Thank you for your time - Good night."  
  
Hermione gathered herself and they stood up. The Count bowed them out of his office and started down the way they came, in the same direction that they were travelling.  
  
"I wonder what Sepet is up to now," Hermione said, bemused.  
  
"Should we follow?" asked Harry. " I'd guess that he's up to something since he hasn't been acting straightforwardly."  
  
"All right, let's follow," she agreed and the two Gryffindor students silently followed their Duelling Professor down the hall and up to the third floor where they had been several times their first year, trying to stop Snape from stealing the Sorcerer's Stone.  
  
Unfortunately, following Sepet was harder than it looked since he continuously made quick turns and they were trying their best to run as quickly as possible without being heard. Sepet turned another corner and Harry and Hermione jumped; startled by the sight that was before them.  
  
Filch was lying unconscious on the ground, blood flowing freely from his neck, with a gash that looked similar to the one that was inflicted on Alicia. Sepet was holding Parvati by the neck, up against the wall with one hand and blood was trickling down from her mouth.  
  
"Miss Patil, why are you here? Where is he?" Sepet asked angrily, as Parvati was struggling to break out of his hold by clawing at his arm.  
  
Not receiving an answer Sepet tightened his grip on her neck, causing her to scream and kick even more, but to no avail since he had a very strong grip on her.  
  
Harry and Hermione drew out their wands and fired Ice Bolts at Sepet in order get him to let go of Parvati. Two bolts of ice shot forth from the wand and the Count, not expecting the attack, was hit in the side by both of them. However, unlike previous uses of the spell, the Count was not frozen and the bolts dug into him deeply, until they were halfway embedded into his side.  
  
The Count cursed, dropping Parvati, who landed on her feet and ran past Harry and Hermione towards the Gryffindor tower clutching her throat. Looking at Harry and Hermione, the Count's red eyes flashed in anger as he pulled the bolts out of his side, causing blood to flow from the gaping hole in his side.  
  
"MR. POTTER - MISS GRANGER!" he hissed furiously, ignoring the blood. "YOU LET HER GET AWAY!"  
  
Harry was wondering what he meant by that but Hermione had other ideas.  
  
"YOU WERE HURTING HER!" she yelled, with equal ferocity.  
  
"HOW DARE YOU! GET OUT! GET OUT NOW!" he shouted, drawing his sword with a bloody hand and advancing on them, his blood continuing to flow onto the stone floor along the way.  
  
"PROFESSOR!" a shrill voice exclaimed from behind. "PUT THAT SWORD AWAY!"  
  
They turned around to see that Professor McGonagall was behind them with Percy, who appeared to be patrolling the halls as was the practice at night.  
  
"As you wish headmistress," Sepet acknowledged grudgingly and sheathed his sword again, continuing to ignore the blood.  
  
"Mr. Potter - Miss Granger, get yourselves back to the Gryffindor tower immediately," McGonagall ordered with a stern look on her face. "I'll take care of this."  
  
Not wanting to figure out what would happen to them if they stayed, Harry gave Hermione's sleeve a tug and pulled her away from Filch's body in the same direction that Parvati had gone. Once the professors and Percy were out of sight, they ran as fast as they could towards the tower.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
They ran until they arrived at the Gryffindor tower, causing the fat lady to ask them where they were.  
  
"Never mind that," Hermione panted. "Pig tail. Pig tail."  
  
"Okay deary - no need to be in such a fuss over it," said the fat lady and the portrait swung aside, allowing them to enter.  
  
"THAT was close," Harry said, as they entered the common room, receiving some stares from students that were still studying. "Sepet was very angry about that, but we shouldn't have left Filch there."  
  
"It should be fine. McGonagall will take care of it. Besides, I don't want to spend the night in detention," Hermione said.  
  
"How did you figure out what your dagger did earlier?" Harry asked as she started up the stairs to the girls' dormitories.  
  
She turned around and smiled. "I found it in a book from the restricted section of the library. You just say 'expletus salus' and it does as good a job as the healing spell. Unfortunately, I couldn't find any information on your sword."  
  
"Say - where's Parvati?" Harry questioned, looking around at the students in the room.  
  
"Oh, I don't know," said Hermione, her face becoming serious again. "She's probably upstairs by now. It looked like Sepet hurt her badly."  
  
"Yeah and as much as I don't like Filch, he didn't deserve to get attacked by Sepet and neither did Parvati with her illness and all," said Harry.  
  
"Did you notice how Sepet didn't seem affected by our bolts?" Hermione asked. "He did lose a lot of blood."  
  
"No, I was too worried about what he would do to us to think about that. But I wonder why he wasn't casting a reflection in that mirror when we entered his chamber," said Harry.  
  
"I noticed that too. He said something about other forms of magic than what we learn here. That could explain why we didn't see his reflection in the mirror and how he was able to appear behind us in the hallway. Then there's also the matter of why he didn't die after losing so much blood."  
  
"Well, I'm going to bed. Good night Harry," she said and continued upstairs to the girls' dorms, leaving Harry in the common room thinking about what Sepet could possibly do next.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A/N: Damn schoolwork. It only gets heavier and heavier. Sorry it's taken me so long to get these chapters posted lately and my apologies to those people who thought the previous chapter sucked. I know it wasn't the best but I had to stick Quidditch in there somewhere. What's a Harry Potter book without Quidditch? Anyway, once the workload goes down, I hope to post everyday like I was doing previously. For those who are wondering when this fic will be finished: I'm guessing I'll have it done in time for Christmas.  
  
Thanks to everyone who reviewed. Now for a small poll:  
  
Basically I'm getting mixed opinions about the Quidditch chapter so I'll leave it to popular vote on this. Do you guys like Quidditch enough that you want more of it and what do you think about Krum vs Harry? If no one likes Quidditch, then I'll keep it down to a minimum as I did until that chapter.  
  
Finally, a special thanks to those who beta-read this chapter and to everyone who supported me despite what the flamer said, especially Juna, EssenceofPower, and Vixen. 


	25. Chapter 23: The Weasley Family

[pic]Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated character are property of J.K. Rowling  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 23: The Weasley Family  
  
The term ended and once the holidays started, the school was completely empty with the exception of a few Hufflepuffs and a handful of Gryffindors. The Weasleys were all staying at Hogwarts this Christmas since their mother had owled them saying that they were to remain at the school where they would be safe. She also mentioned that they would receive a surprise for Christmas. They didn't know what the surprise would be but Fred and George suggested that the surprise would probably another green sweater that their mother knitted for them every year.  
  
Harry was glad that the Weasleys would be staying so that he wouldn't be the only Gryffindor left at school but the fact that the school was fairly empty, it would also give him a chance to practice his animagus forms. He hadn't been able to practice them ever since he had Sirius teach Hermione how to become one and he had been very busy lately.  
  
On Christmas morning, Harry awoke to the sound of Ron's snoring. Realizing it was Christmas, he quietly made it downstairs to the common room where Hermione was asleep on the couch with Harry's elemental book lying across her chest.  
  
After looking around to see if anyone was around, Harry carefully picked up the book and ran upstairs to hide it in his trunk. He also made sure to grab Ron and Hermione's presents before returning back downstairs. He noted that there was a Christmas tree standing near the fireplace of the common room but upon inspecting all the presents, he noticed that there wasn't the usual present from Mrs. Weasley.  
  
As much as Harry wanted to open his presents, he thought it better to wait until Ron had come down. Instead, he separated the presents into three groups: those for Hermione, those for Ron, and those for himself. Among Ron's presents, Harry saw that there was a long thin present that looked a lot like a broom from Hermione and as much as it made him feel a little jealous that she would give Ron something meaningful, Harry knew that Ron could never afford it. Harry then placed the muggle diary that he bought for Hermione in her stack before and a box full of sugar quills for Ron before looking back at his stack.  
  
Looking at his stack, he read the notes attached to each of them to see who they were from. This year he got a present from Dobby, one from Ron, which looked like a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, and finally one from Hermione. However, there was also one small package, similar to one in Hermione's stack, wrapped in red wrapping paper and he noted that there was a short note attached.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The ring contained within is a link to the Phoenix. Keep it with you at all times. It will glow red when danger is near you or those who are close to you. Happy Christmas.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The present intrigued Harry and decided to make an exception and open it. After picking the small present up, he carefully opened it, not wanting to wake Hermione by tearing the wrapping off. Once he had finished unwrapping the present, he saw a small black box and opened it. Contained within was a gold ring with a ruby shaped like a Phoenix on it that looked more or less like Fawkes.  
  
Ron came running down stairs at that moment and Harry quickly slipped the ring into the pocket of his pyjamas before Ron noticed.  
  
"Hey Harry!" Ron yelled, causing Hermione to jolt awake and glare at him.  
  
"Oh sorry Hermione," Ron apologized sheepishly when he saw that he woke her up. "Happy Christmas."  
  
"That was very rude Ron," Hermione scolded but her face broke into a friendly smile. "Happy Christmas to you both."  
  
"Happy Christmas," Harry replied, grinning. "I've already separated your presents for you."  
  
"Thanks mate," Ron said and he quickly went over to open his presents, tearing off the wrapping of each one as Harry watched and Hermione was carefully unwrapping hers.  
  
"WOW! My very own dress robes!" Ron exclaimed, holding up a brand new dress robe that was scarlet on the outside and had gold lining on the inside with black trimming on the sleeves. "I'll need to thank Fred and George later but I wonder where they got the money for this."  
  
Harry grinned at Ron. Little did Ron know that Harry had something to do with it but Hermione seemed to figure it out when she gave him a quick but thoughtful look.  
  
"That looks nice. I'm sure you'll be the best looking wizard when the next ball comes," Hermione commented.  
  
"Thanks Hermione," said Ron, turning the same colour as his hair.  
  
Harry finally began to open his presents and saw that there was a pair of different colour socks from Dobby, Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans from Ron, and a box of Honeydukes chocolate and a quill that wrote on its own from Hermione.  
  
"WHOA! IS THIS WHAT I THINK THIS IS?!" Harry heard Ron yell excitedly, holding up the long thin present Harry saw earlier.  
  
"Yes Ron," Hermione said, "it's a broom."  
  
Ron quickly opened it and saw that it was a Nimbus 2001.  
  
"Thank you so much Hermione. Now I'll be able to match Malfoy," he said triumphantly.  
  
"You're welcome Ron."  
  
"Thanks so much for the diary Harry," Hermione said, grinning. "It's not enchanted, it is?"  
  
"After what happened with Riddle's diary, I've had enough of enchanted diaries. No, that's a normal muggle diary," Harry explained.  
  
"Thanks again. I'm sure I'll have some use for this," she said, putting it aside.  
  
Hermione went up to him and gave him a quick hug, while Ron looked at them jealously, though he relaxed visibly and smiled goofily when Hermione also gave him a hug, making his cheeks heat up.  
  
Hermione then returned to where she was sitting and opened up the small present wrapped in red paper. It also contained a small black box. Opening it, she saw a beautiful ring with another ruby shaped like a Phoenix. Harry had opened his earlier but this would be rather awkward if Ron started asking questions.  
  
Unfortunately Ron noticed it because he asked who it was from with an envious look upon his face.  
  
"I don't know," Hermione replied. "The note didn't say who it was from but I think it's from Walter."  
  
"Why do you think it's from Walter, Hermione?" Harry asked.  
  
"Because he's the one of the two teachers who could possibly afford something this expensive. Now that Dumbledore is out of the way, Sepet will want to come after Harry."  
  
"Why would Sepet want to go after now when he's had plenty of chances to do so? What is that ring for anyway?" Ron questioned. "And why would Walter help Harry if his master is trying to kill Harry?"  
  
"I don't know but I suppose caution is the best policy here," Hermione said thoughtfully. "Unlike Mad-Eyed Moody last year, Sepet wouldn't make the same mistake and want to get out in one piece. For all we know Walter could also be a death eater. The note attached to it says that it will glow red when either my friends or I am in danger and to wear it at all times," Hermione said, putting it in her pocket. "But I want to make sure it's not jinxed before I try using it."  
  
"Ok fearless leader," said Ron sarcastically. "How do you suggest we go about it?"  
  
"I'll get Professor Flitwick to test it of course," Hermione stated matter- of-factly.  
  
"Are you crazy?" Ron said through gritted teeth. "That thing could save Harry's life. We'd know if You-Know-Who was nearby or if not. At any rate, do you think Flitwick would really do that if you went up and asked him to test it?"  
  
"Harry won't have to worry about You-Know-Who if this ring kills him," Hermione said hotly. "Besides, I'm Professor Flitwick's favorite student, that has to account for something.  
  
"Enough you two," Harry interrupted. "Please don't talk as if I wasn't in the room. It's also Christmas and I'd like to enjoy it without having to worry about You-Know-Who."  
  
"Happy Christmas!" two voices said in unison from the staircase leading to the dorms.  
  
The trio turned and saw Fred and George standing there, wearing blue sweaters with a yellow F and G knitted into the center of them. Ginny was also there, blushing and trying to hide behind Fred. She was also an old red sweater that Mrs. Weasley had made previously.  
  
"Did you get your sweater yet Ron? We're wearing some old ones," Fred asked.  
  
"I don't know. Maybe mom forgot to make them for us this year," Ron said, happily realizing that he never got a sweater for Christmas. "Thanks for the new pair of dress robes. Where did you get the money from?"  
  
"That's our secret Ickle Ronnikins," George teased. "Our lips are sealed."  
  
"You two aren't any fun," Ron pouted. "Let's go to breakfast."  
  
The trio went upstairs to put away their Christmas presents and change, then the six of them made their way towards the exit. However, just as they were about to exit through the portrait, it swung open to reveal Dobby holding a platter with of various comestibles, including pancakes, French Toast, and scrambled eggs.  
  
"Dobby wishes to give Harry Potter and his friends their breakfast," he squeaked, as he put down the platter on the table in the middle of the common room.  
  
"Thank you Dobby," Harry said. "I was going to visit you today and give you your Christmas present."  
  
With that, Harry ran upstairs and rummaged through his trunk to find a pair of different colour socks to give to Dobby before running downstairs to see that everyone was already sitting around the table and eating.  
  
He handed Dobby the pair of socks and Dobby's eyes widened. "Harry Potter is kind. Dobby is happy that sir remembers him."  
  
Dobby started to withdraw from the common room with the two socks but Hermione suddenly got up and ran over to him.  
  
She then took out a gold galleon and handed it to Dobby. "Here you go Dobby. Happy Christmas and thank you for making us breakfast."  
  
Dobby's eyes widened again at Hermione's gift. "Harry Potter's Miss is just as kind as he is."  
  
Hermione's cheeks flushed red while everyone in the common room stopped eating and stared at Dobby.  
  
"Uh, Dobby," Harry said, very much embarrassed, "Hermione isn't my girlfriend."  
  
"But Reporter Lady says that she is Harry Potter's Miss," Dobby insisted.  
  
"She was making that up," Harry explained while Ron and Ginny glared at Dobby.  
  
"If Harry Potter says so," Dobby said with uncertainty and backed out slowly. "Dobby wishes Harry Potter and his friends Happy Christmas."  
  
"Happy Christmas Dobby," Harry said as Dobby exited the room.  
  
Once the door closed, Harry breathed a small sigh of relief and joined the rest of the Weasleys, making sure to sit in between Ginny and George so that Ron wouldn't become jealous.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
After breakfast, the six of them decided to go out to the Quidditch pitch and fly around on their brooms. Ron had desperately wanted to try out his new Nimbus 2001 and everyone happily agreed, though Hermione would be sitting in the stands watching them fly since she had a terrible fear of heights.  
  
At the Quidditch Pitch, Hermione made her way over to the stands while Harry and the Weasleys mounted their brooms and lifted off the ground into the air.  
  
As soon as he got into the air, Ron immediately leaned forward and shot forward at a rapid pace, flying in between Fred and George who barely flew out of the way in time and nearly fell off their brooms in the process.  
  
Ron laughed slightly at their expense, causing Fred and George to chase after him on their brooms but since their brooms were slower, they couldn't catch up to him.  
  
"Hey Ginny - Harry!" George yelled. "Give us a hand here."  
  
Harry smiled and leaned forward, joining the case while Ginny tried to head Ron off on her broom only to have Ron fly under her.  
  
"Sorry Ginny, better luck next time," Ron laughed, looking back at Ginny who was now chasing after him on her broom.  
  
"Unfortunately for you, dear brother, your luck has just run out," Fred said.  
  
Ron looked ahead and saw that Fred had flown in front of him so he pulled up to avoid him. However, Harry was already there and Ron collided into him, causing both of them to fall to the ground.  
  
Hermione saw this and quickly cast a cushioning charm to cushion their fall before they hit the ground.  
  
As soon as both boys were on the ground, the three Weasleys flew down and Hermione ran to them to see if they were all right.  
  
"HARRY! RON! Are you okay?" Hermione asked, her voice full of concern.  
  
"Yeah, but my body feels like its been through the laundry machine and I'm still seeing Ron flying around on his broom. Funny how he keeps flying around my head," Harry said weakly.  
  
"I'm not on my broom though, you're just delirious," Harry heard Ron say painfully beside him. "I'm glad nothing is broken."  
  
Hermione breathed a sigh of relief that her two best friends were still in one piece.  
  
"I think that's enough excitement on your brooms for today," Hermione said.  
  
"You're right Hermione," George said, throwing a snowball at Ginny, which hit her in the chest and knocked her to the ground. "This calls for a snowball fight."  
  
"George, that's not a nice thing to do to your sister," said Fred, throwing a snowball at George who was trying to make more snowballs.  
  
By then Ron had gotten up and Hermione was helping Harry up but a snowball hit Ron in the back and he fell face first into the snow.  
  
Ginny started laughing uncontrollably at her older brother only to be hit again by a snowball from Fred.  
  
"FRED!" Ginny screamed, quickly getting up and running after her brother.  
  
"I don't think you'll be able to catch me," Fred taunted, grabbing his broom and taking off into the air with a snowball in hand.  
  
"Not fair," Ginny pouted, but she started gathering up snow to make snowballs.  
  
"Fear not dear sister," George said, grinning. "We'll get our brother back."  
  
Ron also joined in the fun and gathered up a snowball, throwing it at Hermione, hitting her square in the face.  
  
"YOU'LL PAY FOR THAT!" Hermione screamed and she too started manufacturing snowballs while Harry watched the two separate snowball fights in amusement.  
  
However, Harry's amusement didn't last very long as Fred had dive-bombed him, hitting him in the back with the snowball he had in hand.  
  
Harry joined Hermione in her snowball fight with Ron, creating a small barrier to shield them from any incoming snowballs. Fred flew down next to Ron and helped him create snowballs, though Ginny and George were busy creating a barrier of their own.  
  
"This would go faster if we had some help, wouldn't you think?" Harry asked Hermione.  
  
"You mean the water elemental? That's not very fair Harry," Hermione said.  
  
"You're right," Harry said, patting down their wall. "ACCIO FIREBOLT!"  
  
Harry's Firebolt flew to him and he caught it in his hand and ducking just in time to avoid a snowball thrown at him by Ginny.  
  
There were now three different mounds being manned by two pairs of students, each of them busy creating as many snowballs as possible.  
  
"I think we have enough snowballs," Hermione said, creating the last snowball and placing it on top of the stack of snowballs they had.  
  
"SNOWBALL FIGHT!" Fred shouted. "MAY THE BEST TEAM WIN!"  
  
Fred immediately took off on his broom with a snowball and George did likewise, however Harry and Hermione stayed grounded. Ron threw a snowball at Ginny, but she ducked and retaliated, hitting Ron in the face with her snowball.  
  
"TAKE THAT!" she yelled.  
  
"GINNY, LOOK OUT!" George shouted and Ginny turned around to be hit in the chest by Fred's snowball.  
  
"Sorry dear sister but your team obviously isn't the best," Fred said with a large grin on his face.  
  
George then dived at Harry and Hermione who saw him coming and started throwing snowballs at him, trying to knock him off his broom as he weaved through their fire. Harry was going through his stack rather quickly but Hermione waited until George was close enough before throwing her snowball, hitting George in the face and knocking off his broom. "Good shot Hermione," Harry commented with a large grin on his face.  
  
"Thanks," she said and Harry began to make more snowballs while Hermione stood guard.  
  
George got up and called his broom to him with his wand before running back to the safety of his mound as Fred landed and started throwing snowballs at him.  
  
While Fred was distracted, Harry took the opportunity to lob a snowball at Fred but he missed. Hermione however had more luck and ended up hitting George in the leg with her carefully aimed snowball.  
  
"Hey, why isn't anyone attacking Harry and Hermione?" Fred asked.  
  
"Good point Forge," George said. "I say we team up against them, what do you say Ronnikins?"  
  
"I agree," Ron said. "I'll attack from the air, you three attack on the ground. Hand me a snowball."  
  
George put a snowball in Ron's hand and Ron immediately took off on his Nimbus 2001.  
  
"Hermione," Harry said, noticing that Ron was up in the air. "They're trying to get us from the air. Let's concentrate on the three on the ground first unless Ron gets close enough. What do you think?"  
  
"Try throwing some from your Firebolt," Hermione concurred as she threw another snowball at George but missed as he dodged to the right.  
  
"Okay, will you be able to handle this?" Harry asked.  
  
"Yeah," Hermione replied and Harry mounted his broom with a snowball in his hand.  
  
Ron saw this and zipped towards Harry as he was still rising into the air, throwing the snowball at Harry before he could get into the air completely and knocking Harry to the ground. Ron then withdrew to his mound to get another snowball.  
  
"OW!" Harry yelled as he landed next to Hermione.  
  
"So much for that. Ron knows what he's doing apparently. Just stay down here," Hermione said, throwing another snowball at Ginny but Ginny dived forward and landed in the snow, the snowball flying over her head.  
  
"We aren't hitting them," Harry said, getting up. "Wait until they come close before hitting them."  
  
They didn't have to wait long as the three Weasleys on the ground soon came close enough that Harry and Hermione were able to throw a snowball at Fred and George, hitting them square in the chest. However, as Harry turned to hit Ginny with a snowball, Ron dived on him with another snowball and hit Harry just as he was raising a snowball to throw it.  
  
The snowball hit Harry in the side and he fell to the ground, the snowball he was holding, landing on his face.  
  
Hermione felt Harry fall beside her and she turned her attention away for a brief moment, but in that moment, Ginny threw her snowball and hit Hermione in the chest, knocking her to the ground beside Harry.  
  
"We win," Ron said simply.  
  
"Yes," Harry said from under the snow, some of which fell into his mouth and made his mouth go numb because it was so cold.  
  
"Good job Ronnikins," George said. "We won with only half of our team hit."  
  
"I agree, Forge," Fred said, getting up and brushing the snow from his robes. "But now it's almost lunch time and we should get changed into something that isn't so wet."  
  
With that the group gathered themselves and walked back towards the castle, chatting and throwing jokes along the way.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Later that afternoon, after lunch, the trio was strolling around the school chatting amongst themselves when Ron suddenly said, "I just remembered something, I'll catch up to you later."  
  
Ron ran down the hall, back the way they had come, leaving behind a perplexed Harry and Hermione.  
  
"That was strange," Hermione commented.  
  
"I agree," said Harry, who was happy that he could be alone with Hermione. "But since he's gone, do you want to go up to the Astronomy Tower and practice our Animagus forms?"  
  
"Sure," Hermione agreed. "I still haven't been able to transform completely though."  
  
"That's ok," Harry assured her. "I haven't been able to practice mine lately and I'm sure it'll hurt when I try it but I want to try to see if I can fly."  
  
"Please promise me that you'll be careful," Hermione said, concerned about what could happen if he couldn't hold his form long enough.  
  
They made their way up to the top of the Astronomy Tower and looked around. The view of the snow covered grounds was breathtaking but the two soon got around to do what they were there for.  
  
Hermione stood in the center of the tower and concentrated on her Dove form, but she only managed to change her arms into wings.  
  
Harry grinned lopsidedly at her. "Not bad though I don't think you'll be able to fly."  
  
"Oh be quiet, let's see you try flying," Hermione challenged him, reverting back to normal.  
  
"Fine, I will," Harry said and he concentrated on his form.  
  
Harry felt some pain as he transformed but soon enough there was a fully- grown Phoenix standing where he was with red feathers that sparkled in the sunlight.  
  
Harry then managed to walk over to the edge of the tower despite the pain and spread his wings. Jumping off, he felt himself fall but then an updraft caught in his wings and he began to glide through the air.  
  
Hermione clapped her hands in delight watching Harry fly around the tower in his form. However, the pain soon increased and he became more and more exhausted from having to maintain his form. Harry started to direct himself back towards the tower, but he never made it in time as he lost his concentration and changed back to normal.  
  
Hermione screamed as Harry fell through the air towards the ground.  
  
*This isn't good * Harry thought with desperation, fumbling for his wand in his pocket.  
  
Harry couldn't exactly move since he was still in pain but he suddenly hit something that felt like feathers and was quickly sliding off. Just before he fell off, he grabbed onto its tail. A strange sensation of weight being lifted off of him came to Harry and he looked up to see that it was Fawkes that rescued him.  
  
Fawkes started flying higher, back towards the Astronomy Tower. Before he even landed, Harry could see Hermione standing near the edge of the Tower, backing up slowly as Fawkes approached her.  
  
Upon landing safely, Hermione rushed forward and embraced Harry tightly. "I'm glad you're safe. I was afraid that you had fallen to your death."  
  
"I'm grateful that Fawkes was there to save me," said Harry, hugging Hermione back and looking at Fawkes, who had perched himself on one of the stones lining the tower. "Thanks Fawkes."  
  
Fawkes gave him a nod of his head, acknowledging Harry's gratitude.  
  
"Maybe we should go back down to the common room before something else happens," Hermione said, taking Harry's hand and leading him back down with Fawkes following close behind.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Once back in the common room, Hermione immediately sat Harry down in a couch and started lecturing him on how he should have had more practice before trying to fly. Meanwhile Fawkes had settled down on the back of one of the armchairs and observed Hermione's lecture.  
  
"Hermione, is it just me or does Fawkes appear to be studying us," said Harry.  
  
"He's Dumbledore's Phoenix, I'd expect that he'd be a very intelligent bird," Hermione pointed out.  
  
At that moment, Ron came running into the common room to see Harry and Hermione looking at Fawkes.  
  
"Hey guys," he said excitedly. "You'll never guess who I found in the kitchen."  
  
"So you ran off just to get to the kitchen?" Hermione asked, very interested in why Ron had suddenly run off. "What could you have possibly been doing?"  
  
"Yes I ran off to get to the kitchen but what I was doing is my secret," Ron said, his cheeks turning slightly red. "But I was going to tell you that I found my mum cooking dinner."  
  
"WHAT?!" Harry and Hermione exclaimed in unison.  
  
"Yeah, that's what I said when I saw her," said Ron. "But she said that Dumbledore told her to come here since it wasn't safe at our house anymore because father had some trouble at work with Fudge. Fudge accused him of trying to free the Death Eaters with Dumbledore."  
  
Harry and Hermione looked at each other before turning back to Ron.  
  
"But that's ridiculous," Hermione argued.  
  
"Tell me about it, but anyway, you're both invited to come have dinner with us in the Great Hall later on," said Ron, grinning. "My father will be there too."  
  
Harry was more than overjoyed since the Weasleys were the closest thing that Harry had to a family and being able to spend Christmas with them would be one of the best things that happened to him.  
  
"Say, what is Fawkes doing here?" Ron asked, pointing at Fawkes. "I thought he was in Dumbledore's office all the time."  
  
"He followed us in here," Hermione cut in, covering for the fact that they had been practising their Animagus forms.  
  
"Well I'm not done yet in the kitchen," Ron said, turning to leave. "I'll see you guys at dinner."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When dinnertime rolled around, the Weasleys headed towards the Great Hall but Ron once again sprinted off on his own.  
  
"Go on you guys," he called as he ran off, "I'll join you in a bit."  
  
Hermione looked after Ron as he ran down the hall. "Sometimes I wonder about him."  
  
"He's probably going back to the kitchen for whatever he was doing earlier," Harry reasoned.  
  
Upon arriving at the Great Hall, Harry saw that the High Table was already full of food and all the professors, with the exception of Snape and Sepet, were there. Walter was talking with Hagrid and both raised their glasses in Harry's direction when they saw him.  
  
Harry grinned at them just as Arthur, Percy, and Molly Weasley entered the Great Hall. Molly was carrying a tray full of roasted turkey, followed by several House Elves carrying trays of other assorted foods.  
  
All the House Elves placed the trays on the Gryffindor table and exited. Mrs. Weasley came over to Harry and gave him a hug, which he happily returned.  
  
"How have you been dear?" she asked, giving him a warm smile.  
  
"I've been doing well Mrs. Weasley," Harry replied, returning the smile.  
  
Then Ron entered, carrying a plate with a piece of roasted chicken and some roasted potatoes on it. He walked over to where Hermione was and bowed to her.  
  
"Uh Hermione, I couldn't think of any Christmas present to give you," said Ron, looking somewhat nervous. "So I decided to make dinner for you."  
  
With that, Ron placed the plate in front of her and gave her a goofy smile. Hermione, however, was more than overjoyed and she got up and gave Ron a kiss on the cheek in front of everyone, causing him to turn red.  
  
"Thank you Ron," she said, also blushing. "That was very sweet of you to make dinner for me."  
  
The Weasley family broke into cheers and applause, as the two sat down at the Gryffindor table next to Harry, who was forcing a smile.  
  
"Aw, so Ickle Ronnikins has finally made his move," George teased and both Ron and Hermione turned even redder.  
  
If nothing else, Christmas dinner with the Weasleys was enjoyable, though Harry forced himself to concentrate on his food while his two friends talked next to him without argument.  
  
*Well, at least they're happy. * Harry thought, as he shoved a forkful of roasted potatoes into his mouth.  
  
"After dinner," Mrs. Weasley announced. "I have something to give all of you. I thought it'd be best if I gave you your Christmas presents."  
  
"Not another sweater mum," Percy grumbled.  
  
"Oh common," Mrs. Weasley protested. "They're a family tradition, besides we'll be exchanging gifts in the Gryffindor Tower so it will be just as if it were at school."  
  
"Your mother is right Percy," Arthur chimed in. "We all wear our sweaters at Christmas time."  
  
The doors of the Great Hall opened revealing Professor Sepet and Viktor Krum. Sepet strode through the center of the hall towards the High Table and took a seat next to Walter. Krum, trying to avoid the other students from chasing him around for autographs made his way over to the Gryffindor table where Harry was having his Christmas dinner with the Weasleys.  
  
Since Harry never told Hermione about his ring, he still had possession of it. Curious to see if it indeed worked, Harry pulled it out of his robe pocket and saw that it was glowing red.  
  
Stuffing it back in his pocket before anyone noticed, Harry turned back to his meal, though not before noticing that Sepet was looking in his direction with a cold look while Walter continued to talk.  
  
"Excuse me," said Krum, "Is this seat taken?"  
  
Before Harry could reply, Krum had sat in between Harry and Hermione, causing Harry to glare at him and Ron's eyes narrowed.  
  
"What do you want Krum?" he asked maliciously.  
  
"Nothing, I just vont to enjoy Christmas dinner vith everyone," Krum replied, somewhat annoyed at Ron's question.  
  
"Ron, be nice to our guest," Mrs. Weasley scolded before turning to Krum with a smile, "of course you can have dinner with us dear, after all its not everyday we get a world class Quidditch player to join us for dinner."  
  
"Thank you Mrs. Vealsey," Krum said politely.  
  
"But - he's sitting next to Hermione," Ron said quickly but then realised what he had said and clapped his hands over his mouth. The rest of the Weasleys gave him a strange look.  
  
A hand came across and slapped Ron on the cheek. "Ron you selfish prat!" Hermione shouted in anger, "I'm not your girlfriend so I won't have you telling me who can sit next to me."  
  
Ron glared at Krum while rubbing the cheek where Hermione had slapped him but he kept his silence for the rest of dinner, grumbling to himself every now and then.  
  
As the evening dragged on, Harry started to enjoy himself more and ignoring the feeling of disappointment that he felt about Hermione; concentrating more on the fact that he was able to have a family Christmas dinner with the Weasleys.  
  
Eventually Professor Sepet and Walter got up and left, though Harry stayed a little while, quietly observing the conversation between Krum and Hermione.  
  
"Harry, are you feeling all right?" Hermione asked, noticing Harry's thoughtful expression, her face full of worry.  
  
"Yes, I'm fine Hermione," Harry replied. "I'm just feeling a little tired, I'll see you all in the common room."  
  
"Would you like me to take you to see Madam Pomfrey Harry?" Mrs. Weasley asked, overhearing Hermione's question.  
  
"No thank you Mrs. Weasley, I'll just take a short nap - Ron could you wake me up when you're ready to exchange presents?"  
  
"Sure thing," said Ron absentmindedly.  
  
With that, Harry got up and left the Great Hall, heading back to the common room.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Once back at the Gryffindor tower, Harry immediately went upstairs to his room. There, he saw a note on one of the windowsills and Fawkes was sitting next to it. It was from Sirius:  
  
Happy Christmas Harry,  
  
Sorry that I wasn't able to join you or give you a gift this year but I'm currently keeping Moony company in the Shrieking Shack. He wishes you a happy Christmas too. Fawkes was nice enough to deliver this letter for us. Hope to see you soon.  
  
We've noticed some strange activity in the school during our patrols at night but we haven't been able to catch whatever it is. Be careful.  
  
-Padfoot  
  
Harry put the letter aside and petted Fawkes on the head while looking out the window.  
  
"What do you think?" he asked the phoenix tiredly. "Do you think this war will ever be over?"  
  
Fawkes seemed to understand Harry's concern as he ruffled his feathers, sending dust-like particles into the air that sparkled under the light of the full moon.  
  
As the particles continued to sparkle, Harry soon became entranced as he looked out the window that was facing another high tower inside the school.  
  
There was a slight movement within one of the tower windows and Harry suddenly became alert.  
  
Soon a figure emerged from the window and started crawling down the side of the tower like a lizard. Harry's keen sight from having been a seeker for the past four years told him that it was a man dressed entirely in black.  
  
*Is that Sepet? * Harry thought as the figure turned into a large bat and started flying in the direction of the Forbidden Forest.  
  
"Accio broom!" Harry called, whipping out his wand and holding out a hand so that he could catch his Firebolt.  
  
Mounting it, Harry silently stalked the large bat as Fawkes followed closely behind. *Sepet has got to be up to something. *  
  
The bat seemed to be unaware that Harry was following it though once it got to the Forbidden Forest; it immediately dove and flew through the trees.  
  
It sped up and skillfully wove in and out of the trees, forcing Harry to slow down in order to avoid getting caught in the branches since he was still much larger.  
  
Eventually the bat was out of sight and Harry couldn't figure out where it went. Fawkes continued to follow the large bat and Harry tried his best to follow the phoenix but even Fawkes was flying too fast for him.  
  
In order to get a better view, Harry then flew upwards above the trees to see if he could find Fawkes or the large bat.  
  
A rustling of the leaves below Harry caught his attention and he could see the large bat duelling with Fawkes.  
  
The Phoenix was continuously ramming the bat with its body, trying to knock it out. The large bat must have had enough for it soon let out an ear- splitting shriek.  
  
As if answering its call, a swarm of bats came flying from the direction of the castle and flew towards Harry at a frightening speed.  
  
However just before the bats got to Harry, they dived down on the two animals battling down below. Fawkes continued to fight the large bat and Harry wondered why the phoenix wasn't bothering to retreat for soon it would be overwhelmed by the large number of bats.  
  
Harry quickly drew out his wand so that he could assist Fawkes before he was overwhelmed. He fired a stunning spell in the center of the swarm of bats, causing them to disperse. Despite the spell, the swarm of bats never turned on Harry and continued to dive.  
  
Seeing that his first spell was ineffective, Harry fired another stunning spell, though this time the bats dispersed and the spell went through the air in between Fawkes and the large bat.  
  
The spell caused Fawkes to be temporarily distracted and the large bat took the opportunity to flee with the swarm of bats following close behind.  
  
Once the bats were out of sight, Fawkes flew up to where Harry was hovering and faced him.  
  
"You did your best Fawkes - let's head back," Harry said and the two flew back towards the Gryffindor tower.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Once Harry landed back in his room, he saw that Hermione and Ron were already there, talking between themselves and apparently worried that he had gone off on his own.  
  
" - Ron, Harry's safety comes first. I know you're jealous about Krum and me but I assure you that there's nothing going on between us," Hermione was saying, trying to remain calm.  
  
"Hermione, I'm sorry that I made that comment during dinner about you and Krum," Ron said apologetically. "But where would we start to look for him? He could be anywhere."  
  
At that point Harry decided to interrupt their conversation.  
  
"Harry!" Hermione exclaimed, running to him and giving him a hug. "We were so worried about you. Why were you out on your own? You could have been hurt."  
  
For the next few minutes, Harry related all that had happened while his two friends were still at dinner.  
  
"So Sepet was crawling out from the window?" Hermione asked with a thoughtful expression.  
  
"How could he do that?" Ron asked with a confounded look. "There isn't a single spell in our books that would allow anyone to do that. Not even Percy could do that and he knows the most magic out of all of my brothers."  
  
"That may be true Ron, but Sepet could do that because he's a vampire," Hermione declared.  
  
"HE'S A WHAT?" Ron burst out.  
  
"A vampire," Hermione said calmly.  
  
"Why didn't you tell us before?" Ron babbled nervously. "Just great, our Dark Arts teacher is a Necromancer and our Duelling teacher is a blood sucking vampire who's going to turn us all into his servants."  
  
"I didn't say anything before because I was afraid that the Slytherins or other students would try to stake Sepet or Parvati and either way, Parvati would die."  
  
"Why?" Harry asked.  
  
"Because Parvati is Sepet's creation, if the master dies, the servants die too," Hermione stated matter-of-factly. "That also explains why Sepet attacked Alicia. He needed the blood and so did Parvati when she attacked Filch."  
  
"Parvati attacked Filch?" Ron inquired.  
  
"Yes and Sepet was reprimanding her when we got to them," said Harry. "Probably because he didn't want her to make it known that they were vampires."  
  
"Oh, so now we can't kill Sepet after he's turned one of the Gryffindors into a vampire," Ron grumbled.  
  
"So what do we do about it?" Hermione whispered quietly to herself.  
  
"We know the rings work," Harry said, pulling out his ring from his pocket. "I had one too and I used it earlier. It was glowing red when Sepet entered the room."  
  
"You WHAT?" Hermione said in surprise, "You could have been hurt if it was jinxed."  
  
"Hermione, sometimes I think you worry too much," Ron murmured. "Harry is still alive and we know who we should watch out for."  
  
"Being reckless won't get us anywhere," Hermione protested.  
  
"Let's leave this for another time," Harry interrupted. "Ron, I'm sure that your family will be wondering where we are if we don't show up soon."  
  
Hermione agree reluctantly and the three of them made their way downstairs, where the Weasley family was waiting, and enjoyed a wonderful Christmas evening exchanging gifts, story telling and snacking.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A/N: Well, sorry that took so long, but at least I finished planning out the rest of the book and I'm so happy midterms are over. Thanks to everyone who reviewed. I was pleasantly surprised that the last chapter had the most number of people giving me some form of feedback and I am grateful since you caught mistakes that I didn't. Also for those of you who were wondering why Hermione hadn't figured Sepet was a vampire, or didn't say anything earlier, I hope that this chapter also clarifies it. (If you haven't figured it out by now that Sepet is a vampire, here it is again SEPET IS A VAMPIRE!)  
  
According to the poll results, most people are in favour of Quidditch, so I will continue that, but it won't be a major event in the chapter.  
  
EssenceofPower: Thanks for the review and for beta-reading the last chapter.  
  
IloveDraco: Sorry you don't like an evil Draco but everything will make sense in the end. Thanks for the note about Lucius Malfoy. I changed that to the correct Ministry department that he works for.  
  
DarkGolo: Thanks for the review and for the notes. Hopefully the reason why Hermione was so quiet about Sepet and Parvati makes sense. As for no one protesting Dumbledore's arrest, you'll find out why, later. Hagrid was out cold, that's why he wasn't there.  
  
Merced: Whether or not I hook Harry/Hermione up in this book, you'll have to keep reading to find out. ( You'll find out at a major event in February who gets hooked up with who.  
  
Quis: No problem, please review when you wish. I appreciate the feedback and thank you for the note of the errors.  
  
Angelis: You're right, its very hard coming up with a plot that excludes Quidditch. Gryffindor will play all the houses.  
  
Infad: Thank you for telling me that Lucius Malfoy was removed from the board of school governors, I made the according changes. As for Cho, are you sure Harry got over her and are you sure that Lucius' influence has decreased?  
  
Souls: I agree that the Armageddon spell is a little overkill, but Harry hasn't even discovered that section of his book yet.  
  
Marba50: Krum probably should have won the Quidditch game but I thought that Ron had to play some part. He is a master strategist after all, so knocking him off the broom with the Quaffle was the best thing that came to mind. I also haven't seen that move used yet and I think it's a great move to use if you want to knock the seeker off his broom since its not counted as a foul.  
  
Elyna Hynin: Thanks for reviewing. I wish you had voted on Hermione's form earlier because the unicorn would have won out with your vote but oh well, the dove has some use later. 


	26. Chapter 24: Nighttime Adventures

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling.  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 24: Nighttime Adventures  
  
The holidays ended and the Winter Term started but Harry was inwardly happy since the next Quidditch match was coming up soon. Alicia returned from the holidays completely healed of all injuries inflicted on her during her attack and had regained all abilities to walk and play Quidditch.  
  
She resumed her position as the Quidditch captain, though Harry still retained his status as the Gryffindor Co-captain. The Weasley twins, especially Fred, were glad to see that Alicia had made a full recovery and announced their intention to start their own joke shop in Bethnal Green after they had graduated.  
  
As the students were sitting at the feast that always started off each term, Professor McGonagall stood up to make an announcement.  
  
"Could I have everyone's attention please," she began as the students started to settle down. "In light of the recent events, the rest of the staff and I have decided to hold a Valentine's ball at the school this year as a means to cheer everyone up. It will be open to all fourth years and above and you are all encouraged to bring dates."  
  
"I know we all miss our headmaster," McGonagall continued sadly, "but until he returns, I know that he would want us to continue on and be happy."  
  
With that, Professor McGonagall sat down and the hall broke into chatter about who would be asking whom to the ball, though there were a few groans from the third years. Harry noticed Ginny was also looking at him and blushing furiously from the corner of his eye.  
  
"Hey Harry," Ron asked, "Who are you going to ask to the ball?"  
  
Harry would have liked to ask Hermione to the ball but he knew that would cause problems later so he just responded, "I dunno."  
  
"What about Cho?" Ron suggested. "I heard you asked her last year to the Yule ball but she rejected you because she was going with Cedric."  
  
Harry's cheeks turned slightly red from embarrassment of that particular memory and he started playing around with the ring which happened to be glowing red.  
  
"What about you Ron?" Hermione countered, but she also noticed Harry's glowing ring. "I don't hear you trying to ask anyone."  
  
Now it was Ron's turn to blush. "You'll find out who I'm going to ask when I do, Hermione. - Say, Harry, could I talk to you for a moment?"  
  
Hermione gave Harry a questioning look and he shrugged his shoulders, "Uh sure."  
  
Ron got up and walked out of the hall with Harry following closely behind, knowing very well what Ron wanted to talk to him about though he was more worried about leaving the hall since his ring was still glowing.  
  
Sure enough, as soon as they got out of the Great Hall, Ron wheeled around and gave Harry a look that made him appear as if he was at his wit's end.  
  
"What do I do? What do I do?" he asked in a panicked voice.  
  
Harry sighed, "Calm down Ron. What is it?"  
  
"I want to ask Hermione to the ball of course, but what if she doesn't want to go with me?"  
  
"I doubt Hermione will refuse Ron, after all, she's been our friend for the past four year and that has to account for something, right?" Harry said encouragingly.  
  
"Yeah, you're right," Ron said, not entirely convinced. "I think I'll go ask her when I figure out what to do."  
  
Harry knew he was going to regret this later and his insides writhed as he did it but he had to support his best friend regardless of what his personal feelings were, "I would ask her soon before someone else does but you have my full support. Good luck."  
  
"Thanks Harry," Ron said, his face expression brightening slightly at that thought, and he walked back into the Great Hall.  
  
Since Harry was worried that his ring was glowing, he walked back into the hall after Ron and resumed his original seat.  
  
"So what was that about?" Hermione questioned as he sat down.  
  
"Nothing, Ron just wanted to ask me something," Harry replied as he scanned the tables. Sepet wasn't sitting at the high table with the rest of the teachers so Harry looked around at the students.  
  
Eventually his eyes settled on Parvati who was sitting at the end of the table playing around with her food. At the first glance, there didn't appear to be anything wrong with her but upon closer inspection he could see that she had changed a bit during the holidays. Her skin was paler than it was before and had almost lost its colour and that her eyes were a blood red colour.  
  
"Harry?" a voice called.  
  
"HARRY!"  
  
He quickly drew himself away from observing Parvati and turned to Hermione who was nudging him. "What?"  
  
"I was just asking if you wanted to started studying for our OWLs in the library," she said. "They're coming up soon and so I thought we should start studying. You should too, Ron."  
  
"Uh sure, why not," Harry replied, not entirely paying attention.  
  
"Something wrong Harry? You're staring at Parvati," Ron commented.  
  
"My ring is glowing red and Parvati looks a lot different than before," he whispered so that no one would overhear.  
  
"She looks more like a vampire with the pale skin an all," Ron commented. "How come she can still walk in the daytime though?"  
  
"Maybe because she's still a young vampire and hasn't completely got to the point where she can't walk in the daytime," Hermione pointed out.  
  
"Probably, though we should watch her closely. We don't need her biting anyone else," Harry suggested.  
  
"Agreed," Ron and Hermione said in unison.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Days passed quickly and Ron still hadn't asked Hermione to the ball. Harry was also wondering why Krum hadn't tried to ask Hermione to the ball either but that was probably because they were still trying to keep Hermione away from him. As for Harry, he hadn't the foggiest idea of who he could go with except for Cho but he was still feeling a little guilty about Cedric's death. So unless she convinced him otherwise, Harry would have to turn her down.  
  
One relatively warm day for winter, they were sitting in their Dark Arts class and Walter was lecturing them on Red Caps.  
  
"Red Caps are old elfish creatures which are about four feet tall," said Walter as he was pacing the front of the cold classroom as the students were taking down notes.  
  
"They are very difficult to kill and like to drop boulders on travellers. They enjoy the blood of humans and can be killed only by crosses, words from the bible, and swords with a hilt shaped like a cross."  
  
Walter stopped pacing and turned to face the class. "Therefore the only people in this room who could possibly kill one would be Mr. Potter and Mr. Malfoy."  
  
"Why are they called red caps?" a female Gryffindor student asked.  
  
"They wear caps that are soaked in the blood of humans and so that they appear red," Walter explained.  
  
"Will we ever encounter one?" another student asked.  
  
"I don't think you have to worry about that," said Walter with a small smile. "They like to run around battle fields looking for victims or fresh bodies that have just been killed. They also inhabit the dungeons and prey on those who get lost."  
  
A few students gulped at which Walter laughed in amusement, "Don't worry. These dungeons are quite safe. My armed skeletons patrol the school at night so you can all sleep safely."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Eventually the bell rang and the Walter dismissed the class for the rest of the day.  
  
"Don't forget that for homework I want you to write an essay on Red Caps and how to best defend yourself against them," Walter called over the rustling of papers and bags. "It should be at least one scroll of parchment but no more than three scrolls. - That goes for you too Miss Granger."  
  
"Really, must they always give us so much homework?" Ron commented on the way out. "As if our lives weren't hard enough."  
  
"Well if you did your homework ahead of time and would actually read the books, it wouldn't be so hard now, would it?" Hermione huffed. "I'll see you all at dinner, I have something to do."  
  
"She really worries too much about homework, don't you think? She's probably off to the library again to do some more research," said Ron but he stopped dead in his tracks when he realized what he had just said.  
  
Immediately Ron started running after Hermione calling her name, "Hey Hermione, WAIT UP!!"  
  
Harry ran after his two friends, catching up to them just outside the entrance to the library. "Why were you in such a hurry to run after Hermione?"  
  
"I, uh, wanted to, uh," Ron began nervously.  
  
"Common Ron, out with it, what did you want to ask me?" Hermione said impatiently though her face expression looked somewhat hopeful.  
  
It took Ron a while to finally compose himself but he got down on one knee and took Hermione's hand.  
  
"Would you come to the ball with me Hermione?" asked Ron before kissing her hand.  
  
Hermione blushed and her face brightened with happiness at the question, "Why Ron, I'd be happy to accompany you to the Valentine's ball. It's about time you asked me. I was hoping that you would ask me or would at least not be a stupid git like last year if I went with someone else."  
  
"Really?" Ron asked, not believing her.  
  
"Yes, really," Hermione said and she gave Ron a kiss on the cheek. Harry's insides fell at the sight before him but he smiled at their happiness.  
  
"How disgusting," said a snobbish voice that sounded all too familiar. "Mudblood kissing Weasel. As if it couldn't get any worse."  
  
The trio turned around to face Malfoy who was standing against the wall with his two goons and Pansy.  
  
"Stuff it Malfoy," Ron said angrily as he advanced on Malfoy. Or at least tried to since Hermione was holding him back. "At least I have a date to the ball."  
  
"Why are you holding him back Mudblood?" Malfoy taunted, drawing his sword at which Harry's ring began to glow brightly. "Afraid that I might skewer him on this? At any rate, I already have a date, right Pansy?"  
  
"That's right Draco," Pansy cooed in his ear.  
  
Harry drew his own sword, prepared to defend both his friends. "That's enough Malfoy, put away the sword."  
  
"Why should I?" said Malfoy. "Why are you trying to defend Mudblood and Weasel anyway? He just stole your girlfriend."  
  
"She's not my girlfriend," Harry said through clenched teeth.  
  
Malfoy laughed maliciously. "How quaint Potter. How about a duel, you and me swords only?"  
  
"No Harry, you'll just get into trouble," Hermione warned but to no avail since Malfoy charged at Harry sword upraised.  
  
Harry deflected the blow and Hermione immediately tried to go for her own dagger however Pansy had fired a stunning spell at her.  
  
"HERMIONE!" Ron yelled and ran to Hermione's side as she crumpled to the ground. Crabbe and Goyle, not wanting interference from Ron, tackled him and held him down. "YOU SLIMEY BASTARDS, LET ME GO!"  
  
Meanwhile Malfoy and Harry continued their duel in the middle of the hallway. Malfoy made the first move swung his sword diagonally and Harry blocked it, kicking Malfoy in the stomach.  
  
"OOF," Malfoy wheezed as he was knocked back. "You'll pay for that Potter. I'll see you dead."  
  
Malfoy charged at Harry and was throwing quick blows at him which Harry was having increased problems deflecting.  
  
*Malfoy's never fought like this before though he could have learned over the Christmas break * Harry thought.  
  
Spinning in a circle with his sword, Malfoy connected with Harry's arm, cutting deeply into his arm. Only Harry's quick reflexes with his sword prevented him from getting his arm cut off.  
  
Harry's pain receptors in his brain went off as he spun away from the blade and Harry let out a cry of pain as the blood splattered onto the wall and onto the floor, some of it staining his robe. Malfoy then followed up by placing his sword point down on the ground, jumping into the air and kicking Harry in the chest with both legs.  
  
Harry was knocked back against the wall and was barely able to block a blow coming down diagonally across his chest from the right.  
  
Footsteps were now heard down the hall though Malfoy seemed to be unaware of them and the battle continued.  
  
Ignoring the pain coming from his limp arm, a sudden burst of adrenaline came and Harry went on the offensive throwing blows right and left at Malfoy.  
  
Eventually his attacks paid off and Harry managed to cut Malfoy across Malfoy's right thigh. Malfoy cried out in anger but the pain didn't seem to affect him.  
  
"MR. MALFOY! DROP IT! DROP IT NOW!" a loud voice commanded.  
  
Blinded by anger, Malfoy rushed at the sound of the voice and Harry saw Walter jump into action. Walter already had a bone spear in his hand and he easily deflected Malfoy's sword off to the side. There were also two skeletons with swords and shields present but they stood there allowing Walter to deal with Malfoy.  
  
Walter followed up by swinging the other side of the spear and hit Malfoy hard in the shoulder. Malfoy flew to the ground but he used the momentum of his fall and rolled onto his feet, standing up to face Harry again.  
  
Harry deflected the first blow and elbowed Malfoy in one of his eyes with his sword arm, following up by kneeing him in the stomach and kicking him in his thigh.  
  
Malfoy doubled up with pain though he soon ignored it and quickly jumped aside to avoid Walter's spear being thrust at him.  
  
Meanwhile Crabbe, Goyle and Pansy were watching in horror at Malfoy acting so aggressively. Even Ron was looking on in shock. While Malfoy was busy with Walter, Harry used the opportunity to draw his wand and heal his injuries inflicted by Malfoy and to revive Hermione.  
  
Walter continued to push Malfoy back with quick thrusts with his spear, aiming at his legs as if to disable Malfoy.  
  
Malfoy was steadily losing blood from the cut in his thigh but it didn't seem to affect him in his current state. The next time Walter thrust his spear at Malfoy, he swung his sword down cutting off the tip.  
  
Walter looked a bit surprised at this and barely had time to block the blow coming from the right. Unfortunately the sword cut the spear in half and nicked his armour.  
  
"You scratched my best suit of armour!" Walter exclaimed jokingly and swung widely with the part that had a point to get Malfoy to fall back.  
  
Walter then threw the pieces at Malfoy who deflected them easily with his sword but by the time he charged at Walter again, he already had another bone spear in hand.  
  
It appeared that Walter was holding back because now he unleashed a series of blows at Malfoy. He swung the spear, guiding it with his forearm while keeping the shaft under his armpit for support. The blow hit Malfoy directly in the side and Walter followed up by kicking Malfoy hard in the left knee. A loud pop was heard as the kneecap exploded and the bone punctured the skin on the back of his leg. Pieces of skin and blood droplets scattered into the air and fell to the ground.  
  
"AHHH!" Malfoy screamed as his leg collapsed under him, but he didn't have time to fall to the ground as Walter sliced him upwards across the cheek with his spear point and twirled the spear, bringing it down on his right shoulder and finally thrusting the blunt end into Malfoy's stomach.  
  
Malfoy fell backwards on the ground, unconscious, his sword clattering beside him. There was also a pool of blood forming under his broken leg and a sharp piece of bone could be seen sticking out through the skin behind the shattered kneecap.  
  
"I have never seen Malfoy fight like that, do you suppose he could have learned how to do that over the holidays?" Harry asked as Walter went over to attend to Malfoy's unconscious body.  
  
"It's entirely possible but it usually takes even the best person years to master a weapon. Still, his sword isn't ordinary and I must be careful around it," Walter replied, pulling out a handkerchief from his pocket and picking up Malfoy's sword with it. "Mr. Potter, could you please assist me in helping get Mr. Malfoy to the Hospital Wing."  
  
Harry nodded and conjured a stretcher and levitated Malfoy's body onto it. Then he floated it behind him as he followed Walter to the hospital wing with the two skeletons following.  
  
Ron and Hermione quickly got up and followed though Malfoy's goons and Pansy were too frightened and shocked to want to follow.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they arrived at the Hospital Wing, Madam Pomfrey rushed out of her office to meet them. Walter's skeletons took their positions just outside.  
  
"What happened?" she asked, levitating Malfoy's body to an empty bed.  
  
"I'm not entirely certain," Walter explained. "I arrived in the middle of a fight between Mr. Potter and Mr. Malfoy. Mr. Potter is unharmed but I had to subdue Mr. Malfoy before he killed him."  
  
"Goodness, why do you give them such weapons?" Madam Pomfrey huffed.  
  
"Because it was necessary for their duelling class," Walter said, holding up Malfoy's sword with the handkerchief. "If you will excuse me, I need to clean up the mess I made in the hallway."  
  
"You're not getting off that easily Professor," Madam Pomfrey scolded. "Not until I look after you."  
  
Walter gave her a weak smile, "I'm afraid that isn't necessary."  
  
"Oh yes it is," Madam Pomfrey insisted.  
  
"Not if I can help it," Walter replied with a bow. "Mr. Potter if you could please make sure Madam Pomfrey attends to Mr. Malfoy. I'll leave two guards outside to make sure no one bothers her work."  
  
With that, Walter bolted out the door of the Hospital Wing with the sword just as Ron and Hermione arrived.  
  
"Why is he in a hurry?" Ron asked as Walter whizzed by him.  
  
Harry couldn't help but laugh. Bolting out the door like that was what he would have loved to do every time Madam Pomfrey kept him in the Hospital Wing longer than usual.  
  
Madam Pomfrey sighed, commenting to herself as she went to attend to Malfoy. "Sometimes I think that man sets a bad example for the students around here. Mr. Potter, stay where you are. I need to check you over since your blood stained sleeve isn't my idea of coming out with a scratch."  
  
"But - " he started to protest.  
  
"No buts Mr. Potter, sit down," Madam Pomfrey insisted. "I'll attend to you when I'm finished with Mr. Malfoy."  
  
The door to the Hospital Wing opened again and Alicia Spinnet walked in.  
  
"Hi Harry," she greeted him merrily. "Professor Laikov told me that I would find you here. He seemed to be in a hurry, would you have any idea why?"  
  
Harry only laughed and nodded.  
  
"Care to explain why?"  
  
"Sure, why not. It appears I'll be in here until Madam Pomfrey is convinced that I came out of the fight without a scratch."  
  
"Fight? With who?"  
  
"Malfoy," Ron said in disgust.  
  
For the next few minutes, Harry related the story to Alicia, Ron and Hermione who listened attentively to him.  
  
Hermione, Ron and Alicia laughed once he finished and Madam Pomfrey glared at them at which they immediately stifled their laughs.  
  
"That's funny Harry," Alicia said, still giggling.  
  
"Still, I'm taking away 30 points from Slytherin since Malfoy started the fight," she said, turning serious again. "Anyway, I just wanted to tell you and Ron that we have Quidditch practice this evening."  
  
Harry grinned. "We'll be there. I haven't touched the broom in a while so this should be fun. I'm also sure that Ron wouldn't mind trying out his new Nimbus 2001."  
  
"All right, I'll see you then," she said, getting up to leave. "Bye Harry. Bye Ron."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Later that evening, Harry was released from the Hospital Wing since he indeed didn't have a scratch on him, much to Madam Pomfrey's surprise. He immediately made his way up to the Gryffindor tower and grabbed his broom before walking to the Quidditch pitch for practice with Ron. Hermione tagged along just to see them practice but she also brought along a book so that she could study.  
  
"All right, everyone mount your brooms," Alicia instructed once everyone had arrived on the field. "We're playing the Hufflepuffs next Saturday and we haven't had much practice since our game with the Slytherins. If we're to go for the Quidditch cup this year, we can't lose. Especially since we're tied with the Slytherins in points."  
  
Seven brooms rose into the air and Alicia threw the Quaffle to Katie who caught it and tried to score on Ron. He blocked it easily and accelerated forward, throwing the Quaffle to Dean.  
  
Meanwhile Ginny was down on the ground throwing golf balls to Harry and seeing if he could catch them. He didn't miss a single one.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Practice lasted a couple hours but soon it was time to go to dinner. After a quick shower, Harry, Ron and Hermione made their way down to the Great Hall where all the students were gathering for dinner.  
  
"What dress should I wear?" Hermione asked Ron. "Preferably something that matches with your dress robes, don't you think?"  
  
"Uh sure," Ron replied, not really paying attention since he was stuffing himself full of some potatoes.  
  
Hermione elbowed Ron in the ribs at his reply, "Don't you care how I look? I am going with you to the ball right? So shouldn't you care how I look?"  
  
"Of course I care how you look," said Ron, with a sheepish grin. "That's why I'm letting you pick out the dress because whatever you do will be perfect."  
  
Hermione blushed slightly, "I'm glad that you think I'll look perfect for the ball but I'd like your input at least."  
  
Harry quietly listened in during the entire conversation though he was more concerned about his ring which was glowing red again. Glancing at the high table, Harry noticed that Sepet was looking at him thoughtfully as if he knew something.  
  
Harry quickly averted his gaze over to Parvati who was talking casually with Lavender. By now her skin had pretty much lost all of its colour and she was wearing bright red lipstick.  
  
"Hey Harry," Ron called.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Are you done with dinner?"  
  
"Yeah, why?"  
  
"Let's go back, Hermione wants to start on that dark arts essay tonight and I need her help," said Ron.  
  
"Oh, all right," Harry replied, still glancing at Parvati.  
  
With that, the trio got up and walked back towards the Gryffindor tower to get their books.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Later that night after they had finished their essay, Harry was still lying in bed when his amulet that Hermione had given to him for his birthday started glowing.  
  
Harry quickly grabbed his wand and cast a silencing charm around his bed so that it wouldn't wake everyone up. Then he carefully took out his amulet from under his pyjamas.  
  
Immediately the bright glow of the amulet lit up the area around his four poster and Hermione's voice filled his ears, "Hi Harry."  
  
"Hullo Hermione, what's wrong?"  
  
"Sorry to bother you if you were asleep but I heard something in my room and opened the curtains slightly to see what it was," she explained.  
  
"And?"  
  
"Well, I saw Parvati getting up from her bed and pacing the room. She was also muttering something to herself as if someone was talking to her," Hermione said.  
  
"Did she go anywhere?" Harry asked.  
  
"You guess it - she just left, wake Ron up and get your invisibility cloak, we're going to follow her and see where she's going."  
  
"All right, where do we meet you?"  
  
"I'll be down in the common room. See you then."  
  
The amulet stopped glowing and Harry quickly replaced it in his pyjamas and changed before going to wake Ron who was snoring loudly.  
  
"Ron, wake up," Harry whispered as he shook him.  
  
Ron only snored in response so Harry whipped out his wand and used the 'ennervate' spell to wake him up.  
  
"What?" Ron yelled loudly. "I'm awake, I'm awake."  
  
"GO BACK TO SLEEP RON!" Seamus shouted and two pillows came flying in his direction.  
  
"SHH," Harry hissed, clapping a hand over Ron's mouth. "Do you want to wake everyone up?"  
  
"Listen," he continued in a whisper. "Hermione saw Parvati sneaking out of her room. We need to go follow her to make sure she doesn't go biting anyone. Got it? We need to help her so get dressed quickly."  
  
Ron nodded and quickly changed into something warmer while Harry grabbed the invisibility cloak, ring, which was already glowing, and his sword. Then the two of them made their way down to the common room where Hermione was waiting.  
  
"It's about time, she's already left. Now we'll never find her," Hermione grumbled.  
  
"That won't be necessary," said a loud voice that filled the room.  
  
Harry noticed a faint glow coming from his shirt and he pulled out his amulet once again to find it pulsing with the sound of the voice.  
  
"Hey where did you get that?" Ron asked pointing at the pulsing emerald jewel on the amulet.  
  
"I gave it to him for his birthday," Hermione explained much to Ron's chagrin, "But that's not important. We need to find out where Parvati is going and fast."  
  
"Who are you? How did you find out about this?" Harry asked.  
  
"There are four amulets like your own in the world. I have one of them," said the voice. "but time is short and who I am isn't important. The person who you seek is going to the hospital wing."  
  
"Why would Parvati go to the Hospital Wing?" questioned Ron.  
  
"I believe there is an injured student in there who has just suffered fresh injuries. The blood will lure her there. But enough, go now. QUICKLY!"  
  
Harry's amulet stopped pulsing and he quickly placed it back under his shirt. Hermione slipped the invisibility cloak around them and the trio made their exit through the portrait.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"OW, you stepped on my foot Hermione," Ron complained as they rushed through the halls.  
  
"Sorry but it is hard to walk fast and keep this cloak on at the same time," Hermione protested.  
  
"Quiet you two," Harry interjected. "I hear Walter's skeletons coming down the corridor."  
  
Moments later, four skeletons carrying shields and swords came marching down the hallway where they were. The trio flattened themselves up against the wall just in time to allow the skeletons to walk past.  
  
They waited a few moments after the skeletons had left in order to make sure that they wouldn't get caught before continuing on the way to the hospital wing.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they arrived at the Hospital Wing, they saw that the two skeletons Walter had left there earlier were destroyed and there was nothing but the bones and a sword and shield left behind. The other sword and shield was missing but there weren't any signs of a battle since the bones weren't scattered all over the ground but in neat piles where the skeletons would have been standing.  
  
The door was slightly ajar and the room was dark but Harry, Ron and Hermione could see the faint outline of a figure leaning over Malfoy's body from the moonlight coming in through the window. The only other light present was given off by Harry and Hermione's rings which were glowing brightly.  
  
Quietly opening the door and checking to see if anyone else was around, the trio quietly tiptoed into the Hospital Wing. They slowly advanced towards the figure and it eventually became clear that it was indeed Parvati.  
  
She had undone the bandages that Madam Pomfrey had put around Malfoy's injured leg and was lapping up the blood around his injury with quick movements of her tongue. They also saw two sharp fangs glinting in the moonlight protruding from her mouth.  
  
Harry quietly drew out his wand and motioned for Ron and Hermione to do the same. However they were shocked at what happened next.  
  
Parvati finished with the blood around Malfoy's leg and she licked her bright red lips, arching her neck while doing so, and bent down just over Malfoy's neck.  
  
"Stop!" a voice that appeared to be coming from above them commanded.  
  
"Why master?" they heard Parvati question.  
  
"Because he failed to kill Potter this afternoon and isn't worthy of becoming one of us," the voice rasped. "His body is worthless, don't touch him. If the humans find out, it will be the end of us."  
  
"But I'm hungry. I haven't had any blood since before the Christmas break and I feel weak," Parvati complained.  
  
"Enough, I will provide a tasty morsel for you. Wait a few days and you will receive it. I trust that you can hold out until then?"  
  
"Yes master," Parvati acknowledged submissively.  
  
"Now open the window for me and then return to your chambers before anyone suspects."  
  
Parvati walked over to the window and opened it. A flutter of wings above them was heard and a large bat flew out of the window.  
  
Parvati closed the window again and quickly walked out of the infirmary to go back to the Gryffindor tower.  
  
Footsteps and voices were heard coming down the hallway and Harry started to panic. Not wanting to be found in the Hospital Wing, the trio quickly ran out, careful not to let the invisibility cloak slip off them.  
  
" - Two of my skeletons were destroyed there," they heard Walter say. "There's an intruder about. My skeletons will go on a higher status of alert."  
  
"Professor," said the other voice which turned out to be Snape as the pair came running around the corner. "Your skeletons may not require sleep but they are nothing compared to living, breathing human beings with intelligence. Your skeletons are nothing more than mindless idiots."  
  
"We need to check on Mr. Malfoy, Serverus. There's a vampire on the loose and we don't need any more students injured."  
  
"I'm perfectly aware of that," Snape said disdainfully as they entered the Hospital Wing.  
  
"Now's our chance, let's go," Harry instructed.  
  
"What about Malfoy?" Hermione protested. "We can't just leave him here even if it is Malfoy."  
  
"Not much we can do about that - Walter and Snape will take care of him," Harry countered. "Let's go."  
  
With that, the trio took off at a brisk pace back towards the Gryffindor tower.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Once they arrived back at the common room, Hermione threw off the invisibility cloak.  
  
"Walter knows that there's a vampire around but I wonder if he knows that his employer is one," Ron stated.  
  
"He probably does though Sepet seems pretty good at hiding the fact that he's a vampire from the public," Hermione pointed out. "He could also have been the one that informed us about Parvati through the amulet but we didn't see an amulet in his office or on him. It can't have been Sepet since he was telling Parvati not to attack Malfoy, so why would he tell us to go after her if he was already there."  
  
"We should keep a better eye on Parvati," Harry said. "Hermione, you're her roommate so that shouldn't be a problem. You could just tell us when she leaves."  
  
"I know but what about Sepet? Where is he getting his meals from?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Hogsmeade or some other local town," Harry suggested. "But we can't do much about that right now."  
  
"Ugh, can we sleep on this?" Ron protested. "I'm tired and I don't want to have to worry about becoming Parvati or Sepet's next meal."  
  
"All right, we'll discuss this later. At least Parvati won't be leaving her dorm and won't bite anyone else," Harry said. "Good night Hermione and be careful."  
  
"Good night you two," Hermione returned and she cautiously went back up to her dorm.  
  
Harry and Ron watched her go and waited until she was safely back in her dorm before returning to their dorm as well.  
  
A/N: I was planning on posting this last Friday but I decided to change the plot so I finished writing it and editing today. The next chapter is already half-way written and I hope to post it by the end of this week (after I finish off all my homework for the week).  
  
Messages to people who reviewed:  
  
Holy Knight: No I don't play D&D but I do play Diablo II.  
  
John Black: Thanks for reviewing. Please do keep reading. I think you won't be disappointed by the end of the book.  
  
Flames: Whoa, thanks for the great review! When I started writing this, I didn't think anyone would think that this fic was a real copy.  
  
SilverDagger: Thank you for the review.  
  
^_^: Yeah I agree that 'ejaculated' was bad word choice in that context. It's been changed. Thanks for reviewing.  
  
Quis: Thanks for telling me about the spelling/grammar errors. I try to go back and catch all of them but I can't be perfect. If you could be more specific on the locations of the errors, I will go back and fix them.  
  
Elana: hmm, yes, I think I should do something with the Basilisk form but I haven't been able to think of anything just yet. I've been trying to be spontaneous with the ideas for the chapters but I don't always get everything. There's too much stuff to cover but maybe I can do more with it later or at least in the next book.  
  
Marba50: Thanks for pointing that out and I've fixed that problem about there not being enough girls to match with guys. I just hope no one's disappointed but eh, I can't please everyone.  
  
Princess Hermione: Thanks for the review! Harry's a little disappointed that Ron gets to go with Hermione but he'll be happy in the end.  
  
BloodRedSword: Thank you. I hope that you continue to read.  
  
Heather: There will be more H/Hr even though Ron gets to go w/ her to the ball. There'll be more plot twists to come.  
  
Liedral: H/Hr will get together eventually but depending on how the plot works, they may not get together until probably book 7.  
  
Fopalup: I'm glad you like the rings but as for whether or not Harry was jumping to conclusions, I hope this chapter answers your question. 


	27. Chapter 25: New Orders

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling. I only own the plot.  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 25: New Orders  
  
A few days passed and Hermione hadn't said anything about Parvati getting up at night. In fact, Parvati started appearing to her classes again and acted normally though her skin was pale as ever and her clothes almost covered every part of her body except for a small part of her face.  
  
One morning two days before the next Quidditch match against Hufflepuff, Harry was eating breakfast with Ron and Hermione in the Great Hall when an owl came swooping down and dropped a copy of the Daily Prophet in front of them.  
  
Hermione immediately picked it up and read it while Ron and Harry looked over her shoulder.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The Daily Prophet January 10, 1995  
  
Hogwarts Headmaster to be Tried for Treason By: Rita Skeeter  
  
Today is a happy day in the wizarding world for justice will be served once again. Albus Dumbledore, former headmaster of Hogwarts, will be tried for treasonous activity in attempting to free the Death Eaters of Azkaban and for the murder of nine of our best aurors. They will be remembered with honour for serving their country well.  
  
Our very own heroic Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge will be present at his trial as a witness to the crime since he was there to prevent the treacherous headmaster from succeeding.  
  
The trial is set to take place sometime in February and the sentence will be carried out accordingly should he be found guilty. The Minister himself assures us that "Albus Dumbledore will be brought to justice for the crimes he has committed and I will be there to ensure that justice is done."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Hermione dropped the Daily Prophet on the table with an unsettling look upon her face.  
  
Harry couldn't believe it either. Their headmaster was going to be tried for the very crime he was trying to prevent from happening.  
  
The three of them sat there in silence for what seemed like an eternity before Hermione broke the silence.  
  
"How could this happen?" she asked. "He was innocent."  
  
"Malfoy's father probably had something to do with this," Ron said angrily. "He's the one who arrested Dumbledore so I'd be willing to bet that he pushed for this to happen and bribed everyone who disagreed with him."  
  
"Ron, you don't have any proof of that," Harry pointed out. "Besides, I'm sure that the other teachers will not allow this to happen and they'll find a way to prove Dumbledore innocent."  
  
"That's provided that Sepet doesn't kill them all first."  
  
"Oh Ron, don't be so pessimistic," said Hermione, gathering up her books and getting up.  
  
"I'm not being pessimistic," Ron insisted. "It's the truth and you know it."  
  
"Hey you two," Harry interrupted as he too got up from his seat. "Let's not get into another argument."  
  
Hermione let out a sigh. "Let's go. We don't want to be late for class."  
  
"It's the Dark Arts class, I'm sure Walter will cut you some slack. I mean he's been helping you and Harry out ever since he's gotten here," said Ron, getting up and following Hermione as she walked at a brisk pace out the door with Harry.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they arrived at their Dark Arts class, they were surprised to find that they were the first ones to arrive with the exception of Parvati who hadn't appeared to breakfast. Parvati was just sitting at her desk playing around with her quill and didn't seem to notice them coming in.  
  
"Hullo Parvati," Hermione said as she sat down in the seat behind her with Harry and Ron on either side of her.  
  
"Oh hi Hermione, Harry and Ron," Parvati said, turning around to face them. Parvati didn't have her white hood up but she was completely covered in from head to toe otherwise by her school robes. "How are you? Sorry I've been worrying you guys too much with my illness."  
  
"It's perfectly all right Parvati," Harry said, smiling uneasily at her as he hid his glowing ring under the desk.  
  
The door opened and Percy walked pompously into the classroom with the rest of the students filing in behind him.  
  
"Good morning class, please take your seats so that we can begin" Percy said airily as he grandiosely walked to the front of the classroom.  
  
The students noisily took their seats and continued to chat amongst themselves much to Percy's annoyance.  
  
"If you would please settle down, we can begin," Percy growled.  
  
"Hey, where's professor Laikov?" a student asked. "He's supposed to teach us all about dragons."  
  
"Professor Laikov is attending to some business and I will be running this class," Percy explained over the clamour of voices in the room.  
  
"Now, if you're all finished, SETTLE DOWN!" Percy barked.  
  
The students finally conceded and gave him their attention though some of them were still idly doodling on pieces of parchment.  
  
"Today I will be teaching you how to set up portkeys."  
  
"Really? I didn't know you could set one up," a Slytherin student commented, receiving some sniggers around the room.  
  
"That will be enough of your misbehaviour," Percy ordered.  
  
"Oh come on Percy," Ron whined. "Could you cut us some slack here? I'm your brother after all."  
  
"No Ronald Weasley. You may be my brother but in my classroom, there will be no playing favourites."  
  
"Aw, you're no fun," Ron pouted, leaning on one arm.  
  
"Ron, be nice to your brother," Hermione scolded. "Learning about portkeys could be fun."  
  
"Only to you," Ron said sarcastically.  
  
Hermione's face twisted in anger. "RONALD WEASLEY! ARE YOU IMPLYING THAT I'M BORING!?"  
  
Hermione's outburst caught the attention of the students in the room, some of them with amusement.  
  
"That's enough you two," Percy said sternly. "That'll be 10 points each from Gryffindor for disrupting the class. Now everyone take out a piece of parchment and start taking notes."  
  
For the remainder of class, Harry was forced to sit in between his two friends who were just glaring at each other, ignoring Percy's boring lecture on the history of portkeys.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Once class was over, Hermione quickly gathered up her things and stormed out of the room. Harry made an attempt to follow her but was stopped by Ron who was looking very guilty.  
  
"I don't know what came over me Harry. Now she'll never want to go to the ball with me."  
  
Harry shot him a look of annoyance. "What do you want me to do Ron? Try to fix things between you two? Not this time. It's you that has to earn Hermione's forgiveness, not me. Come on, we're going to be late for Divination."  
  
Ron sighed and gathered his things then the two of them made their way over to the North Tower where the Divination classroom was.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Divination was relatively uneventful and Harry was still ticked off at Ron for having treated Hermione so badly. All they did that period was make up more means by which they could possibly be killed sometime in the next week at which Trelawney commented, "I'm glad that you two are accepting your fates very well."  
  
After leaving Divination, Harry and Ron went to the Great Hall for lunch. Ron made every attempt to look for Hermione but to his dismay, she avoided him the entire time. Only when it was time to go to class did she bother to approach them.  
  
"Common Harry," said Hermione, still ignoring Ron. "It's time to go to our duelling class."  
  
Harry bid goodbye to Ron and followed Hermione out to the Quidditch pitch for their duelling class.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Upon arriving at the Quidditch pitch, Harry was surprised to find Moody there instead of Sepet.  
  
"Hullo Mr. Potter," Moody growled. "Glad you could make it. Professor Sepet is away on business with Professor Laikov so I will be teaching the class today."  
  
"What will we be learning?" Hermione asked enthusiastically. "I hear you're the best auror around."  
  
Moody gave her an awkward smile. "Yes, that's true but one can never be too careful around here."  
  
Harry nodded knowingly and moved to draw his sword.  
  
"Your weapons won't be necessary today Mr. Potter. You'll only need your wand for this session."  
  
Harry and Hermione took out their wands and waited in silence for the rest of the students to arrive.  
  
Eventually the other six students arrived, Viktor Krum among them but Malfoy wasn't since he was still in the hospital wing.  
  
"Now we will begin," Moody growled, his magical eye looking from student to student, making them feel uneasy. "First I'd like you to pair off and face each other. This time you'll be fighting each other one on one."  
  
"No hard feelings if I beat you ok Harry?" Hermione teased him as she walked a distance and faced Harry.  
  
"No hard feelings Hermione. I'll finally get to teach you not to be a know it all," Harry replied with a playful smile.  
  
Hermione laughed. "Not today you won't. Maybe we'll see how good you look as a sheep."  
  
They bowed and drew their wands. There was a tense moment as they stared at each other waiting to see who would make the first move.  
  
Eventually Harry was the one to do so and fired a stunning spell at Hermione who rolled on the ground and countered with an ice-bolt.  
  
Harry raised an air shield to defend himself and the ice bolts dispersed around him upon hitting the shield. However the bolts continued on their paths and both Terry Boot and Hannah Abbot were hit by the stray ice bolts. The two students fell to the ground frozen solid but neither Harry nor Hermione noticed what had happened.  
  
Harry returned with a tickling charm which hit Hermione directly in the chest. Hermione burst into laughter as she fell to the floor but she quickly cast dispel magic upon herself and returned fire with a fireball this time.  
  
Harry dodged out of the way by rolling on the ground just in time to avoid the fireball which hit the ground and melted the snow where he was standing.  
  
"Nice to see you running," Hermione taunted.  
  
"You haven't won yet," Harry replied and fired a paralysis spell at Hermione but missed.  
  
Hermione fired several fireballs followed by a jelly-legs jinx. Harry managed to block the fireballs with his air shield but was hit straight on by the jelly-legs jinx. His legs wobbled uncontrollably under him and he collapsed to the ground.  
  
Hermione gave him a look of triumph and shouted, "Expelliarmus!"  
  
Harry raised his wand and cast a shield which deflected the spell towards Cho Chang. Her wand flew out of her hand and she was thrown to the ground.  
  
"HEY!" she exclaimed. "WATCH WHERE YOU'RE AIMING!"  
  
Now that three students had been hit, the remaining three students decided to stop duelling and turned their attention to Harry and Hermione.  
  
Seeing that his partner had been hit, Justin Finch-Fletchley shot the impedimenta curse at Hermione but Harry saw it coming and cast a force field to block the incoming spell.  
  
The spell rebounded and hit Blaise who, in anger at being hit, cast an engorgio curse on Justin. Justin's body swelled up and he collapsed to the ground from the pain.  
  
Although Moody was watching the duel in amusement, he saw that it was getting out of control and pulled out his wand to undo the injuries inflicted upon the other students.  
  
In the meantime, Harry had undone the jelly-legs jinx and ran at Hermione firing several ice bolts at the same time.  
  
Hermione countered with her own force field and the spells reflected back at Harry who dodged all but one bolt. The bolt hit his leg and froze it solid.  
  
On the ground, Harry cast a dispel magic on Hermione's force field and followed up by casting a paralyzing spell on her but she pointed her wand at the ground and raised an ice shield to absorb the spell.  
  
The ice shield was not exactly transparent and an idea hit Harry. He fired several fireballs at the ice shield followed up by the blinding spell.  
  
As expected the fireballs melted the ice shield though Hermione was quick to use the fire shield which absorbed the fireballs. However that didn't block the blinding spell and it hit her straight on.  
  
Hermione screamed at the sudden darkness that engulfed her vision and fell to the ground. Seeing this, Harry quickly fired a fireball at his frozen leg which melted the ice and ran to Hermione's side.  
  
"Hermione," Harry called as he cast dispel magic on her to undo the blinding spell. "Are you all right?"  
  
Hermione nodded gave him a playful smile. "That's the one thing I like about you, you're so predictable."  
  
Harry finally noticed Hermione's wand pointed at him and heard her mutter "Expelliarmus" once again.  
  
Harry's wand shot out of his hand and flew into Hermione's at which she declared victory. "I win."  
  
"Hey, that wasn't fair," Harry complained and was going to tickle Hermione senseless but was refrained from doing so at the sound of Moody's voice.  
  
"Interesting elemental magic you two," Moody commented, focusing both his normal and magical eye on Harry. "One question, how long have you been using it?"  
  
Hermione looked a bit uneasy. "Since summer."  
  
"That's very interesting since the ministry was keeping an eye on all the Order members and what spells they used during that time. Only use of a transfiguration spell was recorded all summer by Mr. Potter here.. Still. I'm surprised you haven't caused havoc seeing as you've been hitting every other student here."  
  
"What?" Harry said, giving Moody a look of confusion. "I thought you were able to detect all kinds of magic."  
  
"That's true but apparently we couldn't detect your elemental magic. I suggest you be more careful with that because it's not easy to control."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
After class, Harry and Hermione made their way over to the Great Hall with the rest of the students. During the entire time, Hermione noticed that Cho was staring at Harry and blushing and she pointed it out to Harry.  
  
"Cho is staring at you Harry. Maybe you should ask her to the ball," Hermione suggested. "Then you won't have to go alone, besides.I heard that you asked her last year so you must fancy her."  
  
Harry shook his head. "I don't think I could do that. I'd be disgracing Cedric's memory and it'd take a very strong argument to convince me otherwise."  
  
"Oh come off it Harry," Hermione said as they entered the Great Hall. "She's one of the best looking girls in the school. Surely that has to interest you."  
  
Harry blushed slightly. "But there are always other girls."  
  
"Would you rather go with Parvati? You didn't look too happy on the dance floor last year with her."  
  
"Good point," Harry agreed as Ron approached them from behind.  
  
"Uh hi Hermione," Ron said nervously and Harry noticed that Ron had his hands behind his back.  
  
"What do you want?" Hermione said hotly. "I don't have anything to say to you."  
  
"I, uh," Ron stuttered. "I wanted to apologize to you for being such a stupid git earlier today."  
  
"Hmph, you'll have to do better than that if you want me to forgive you," Hermione said, turning around to face Ron.  
  
A small smile broke out on Ron's face. "I think I can."  
  
Ron brought his hands out in front of him and Harry saw that there was a single rose in it.  
  
"For you," Ron said. "Please forgive me?"  
  
Hermione's face brightened and she took the rose in her hands. "Thank you Ron."  
  
Ron breathed a sigh of relief but was later surprised to find Hermione throwing her arms around him. "I forgive you."  
  
At that moment, a thought dawned on Harry and it made him want to whack himself.  
  
*Why didn't you see it before? Hermione likes Ron, not you. * Harry thought. * Why can't you just accept it and stop chasing after Hermione?*  
  
*Because you like her and you want her for yourself, * another voice said.  
  
*Shut up * he thought to himself.  
  
*I'm right and you know it. But hey, it's just a simple crush. You'll get over it in time, * said the other voice.  
  
*Oh great, I must be going insane if I'm having an argument with myself *  
  
Harry let out a small sigh and got up from the table.  
  
"Where are you going Harry?" Hermione asked.  
  
"For a walk. I need to think."  
  
"Oh, all right," Hermione said, sounding slightly disappointed.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
As Harry walked through the halls, the only sound being that of his shoes echoing on the stone floor, he was still pondering how this revelation would affect him and who he could ask to the ball.  
  
Since Ron had asked Hermione to the ball already, she was out of the picture and his two best friends would probably start ignoring him too. that thought was a little less pleasant.  
  
The water guardian's voice echoed through his mind at that thought. *Well, if you're not willing to date Hermione, you could always date me. *  
  
"Maybe that's not such a bad idea, at least I won't be without a date," Harry whispered to himself. He smiled slightly at the thought of the looks on everyone's faces if he came with a girl who wasn't even human yet was probably better looking than any other girl at the school with the exception of Hermione and Cho.  
  
The torches along the walls flickered for a moment and Harry thought he heard something whoosh quickly behind him that sounded like someone wearing robes or a cape. However when he turned around, there wasn't anyone in sight.  
  
Taking a look at his ring, he saw that it was pulsing a blood red colour, meaning that danger was near. Drawing his sword and his wand, he moved along slowly, keeping his wits about him.  
  
There was another whooshing sound, above him this time but upon looking up he still saw nothing.  
  
He continued on towards the Gryffindor tower walking at a much quicker pace and glancing behind his back every now and then. Hopefully whatever it was wouldn't follow him there.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
After climbing up several flights of stairs at a brisk pace, making sure to jump over the gaps in some of the staircases, the portrait of the Fat Lady finally came into view.  
  
Glancing once more at his ring, he saw that it was still glowing, causing him to quicken his pace. Two torches went out behind him and Harry turned about quickly to see what had blown them out.  
  
"Hi Harry."  
  
Harry jumped at the sound of the voice behind him and wheeled about quickly to meet the threat.  
  
Cho let out a small scream as Harry did so since he was armed, however her own reflexes made her draw her dagger and wand in one swift motion in response to his sudden movement.  
  
"Oh, sorry Cho," Harry apologized, dropping both arms to his side.  
  
"Harry, you scared me," she breathed, putting her weapons away. "Why do you have your sword and wand drawn?"  
  
"I thought I heard something following me," Harry explained, glancing once more behind him to see if anything was there before putting away his sword and wand.  
  
"I think you're just being paranoid Harry," she said, smiling slightly at the thought of his actions. "It's probably just the wind."  
  
"I guess," said Harry, though he wasn't convinced that whatever was out there had gone since his ring was still glowing. "Though with the rise of You-Know-Who, it's probably best that I don't take any chances."  
  
Cho's face fell that that thought. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything."  
  
"It's ok Cho - so why are you here?" Harry asked.  
  
Cho blushed slightly. "Um, I saw you walk out of the Great Hall during dinner and didn't come back; I thought that you might come here. I was also wondering if you had a date to the ball yet."  
  
"No I don't," he answered truthfully, watching Cho's face turn redder by the moment.  
  
"Would you come to the ball with me?"  
  
Harry thought about it for a moment, he could do go with Cho and that would solve the problem with having to find a date but wouldn't be insulting Cedric's memory?  
  
"What about Cedric? I don't think I could do that out of respect for him, Cho."  
  
"That's really honourable of you Harry," said Cho, giving him a smile that made him get butterflies in his stomach. "But we can't just linger on his death; we all need to move on. In the short time that I've gone with Cedric, I know that he puts everyone's happiness over his own just like you. So I don't think he'd have much of an objection to you coming with me for just one dance. Besides, I couldn't think of anyone better to go with than you seeing that you had asked me last year and I had to turn you down because I was going with Cedric already."  
  
"All right Cho," he said, a tad flattered by what Cho had said. "I'll come with you."  
  
Cho's face brightened up, "Really?"  
  
"Yes," he confirmed.  
  
Suddenly Cho ran up to Harry and enveloped him in a tight hug, knocking him back in the process.  
  
"Thank you so much Harry. This means a lot to me," said Cho, hugging him even tighter.  
  
"Cho," Harry wheezed, putting the hand with his ring on her shoulder. "I can't breathe, could you please let go."  
  
"Sorry," she apologised, slowly pulling out of the hug and taking his hand in hers. "That's a nice ring, where did you get it from?"  
  
"It was a gift from someone for Christmas."  
  
Cho seemed to cringe that the mention of a gift from someone but she didn't ask who it was, "Why is it glowing? It looks pretty."  
  
*Should I tell her? * Harry thought to himself, *could the ring be warning about her? *  
  
Harry just settled for a relatively safe answer, "It's enchanted to glow like that at different times. Sometimes it glows, sometimes it doesn't."  
  
"Oh," said Cho, avoiding Harry's eyes for a moment, "Say - there's another trip to Hogsmeade sometime after your Quidditch match against Hufflepuff, and uh, I was wondering if maybe we could go together and pick out our outfits for the ball."  
  
"Sure," Harry said, "That'd be a good idea."  
  
*Maybe this will keep my mind off Hermione and Ron won't have a reason to get mad at me over her* Harry thought. *I'll need to ask the water elemental to teach me how to dance. I don't need to act like an idiot on the dance floor in front of everyone like last year. *  
  
Footsteps were heard coming up the stairs around the corner and Harry turned around to see who it was. The footsteps drew nearer and eventually the figure of Sepet came into view. "Mr. Potter - Miss Chang, good to see you two are still well. Come, there's a meeting and you're both needed."  
  
Harry noticed Sepet glancing at his ring as he and Cho made their way towards the Count. As if under a spell, Harry's ring immediately stopped glowing. This caused Harry to become more cautious and as they followed the Count, he kept his hand ready near his wand and sword.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they arrived at Dumbledore's office, Harry found Hermione waiting there talking with some of the other students. Malfoy was not in sight.  
  
"HARRY!" she exclaimed, running up to him. "Where did you go? I was worried that you went off by yourself. Ron and I were looking for you until Terry found me and told me that we were meeting. Ron went back to the common room."  
  
Harry grinned. "I'm sorry, I was just tired so I was going back to the common room to take a nap and I ran into Cho along the way."  
  
"Oh - Hullo Cho," Hermione said, looking slightly vexed. "How are you?"  
  
"I'm doing fine," Cho replied cheerfully. "And you?"  
  
"Couldn't be better though I wonder what this meeting is about," she said.  
  
"Hey Harry - Hermione," said a voice that turned out to be Sirius. "How are you both doing?"  
  
"We're doing well, where's Professor Lupin?" Harry asked.  
  
"He's with Snape taking his potion," Sirius explained.  
  
"Oh I see - we missed you for Christmas, the Weasleys are staying here, did you know?" Hermione asked enthusiastically.  
  
"Yes, I saw Molly earlier today," said Sirius. "She'll be joining us too this evening."  
  
At that moment, Professor McGonagall came around the corner laughing merrily with Walter but what was very surprising was the fact that she appeared to be blushing. However upon arriving at the stone gargoyle, she regained her composure and directed everyone upstairs.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The chairs were arranged in the normal circular fashion Harry noted upon entering the room and each member took their normal seat, Harry sitting in between Cho and Hermione.  
  
Professor McGonagall took her usual seat next to Dumbledore's empty one however Walter seemed to disagree when he walked up to her and took her hand.  
  
"As headmistress, you should take your seat as our leader. The headmaster would have preferred it that way if he were here," Walter said gently as he led Professor McGonagall to Dumbledore's seat and sat her down in it.  
  
Mundungus Fletcher and Arabella Figg nodded their heads in approval when McGonagall gave them a look of uncertainty.  
  
The door opened and Hagrid, followed by Arthur, Bill, Percy, and Molly Weasley, entered the room. They took their usual seats though Molly sat in the seat that was usually reserved for McGonagall.  
  
"Hullo Molly," said Arabella Figg with a warm smile. "I'm glad you could finally join us. The old crowd wouldn't be complete without you."  
  
"Thank you Arabella," said Mrs. Weasley returning the smile.  
  
Finally the door opened once more and Snape, Remus, and Flitwick entered the room. Remus looked a bit pale and he gave Harry a weak smile as he sat down next to Sirius.  
  
At that point, McGonagall stood up and addressed the group, "I apologize to everyone for the sudden notice but Mr. Percy Weasley has just come to me with some information regarding our headmaster - if you please Percy."  
  
Percy stood up and walked pompously to the centre of the room, receiving some glares from Justin, Blaise, and Hannah.  
  
"As Mr. Fudge's personal assistant," Percy began as he looked around the room through his glasses. "I am usually sent to carry out special tasks and fill out paperwork for him."  
  
"Despite the Order's failed mission to Azkaban, Mr. Fudge does not suspect that I am part of this Order and as such, I still have access to high level executive orders that he wishes to carry out," continued Percy in his usual lofty tone.  
  
"Time is short Mr. Weasley. Disperse with your pompousness and get to the point," Sepet ordered.  
  
"I was just getting to that your highness," said Percy, irritated that he was interrupted for a brief moment in his moment in the spotlight. "- The point is that I had recently come across an executive order regarding the headmaster."  
  
There were several gasps around the room and Hagrid stood up quickly, knocking his chair over in the process.  
  
"What do ye mean?" he demanded as Molly and Arabella ran over to calm him down. "If they did anythin' to him, I'm gonna -"  
  
"Please calm down Rubeus," Molly pleaded "Hear Percy out and we can decide what to do."  
  
"Oh all right," Hagrid conceded huffily and he picked up his chair and sat in it. Molly and Arabella stood behind him just in case Hagrid decided to have another outburst.  
  
Percy was now scowling since he had been interrupted twice, at which Walter was smiling in amusement, but he forced himself to continue on, "The order was regarding his trial which is to take place some time in February."  
  
"However there is a slight problem with this," Percy continued. "Mr. Fudge will be serving as the key witness and since there are no other witnesses, it will be difficult for the headmaster to win the case."  
  
"That's old news. Anyone could have gotten that in the Daily Prophet," Sepet pointed out, holding up a copy of the Daily Prophet and smirking evilly at Percy's miffed look.  
  
Hermione couldn't contain herself any longer. "Shouldn't we do something and try to represent the headmaster at the trial?"  
  
"I know what you mean Hermione," Percy agreed, "However the public is under the impression that Dumbledore and his followers were intending to free the Death Eaters in Azkaban. Therefore if any of us attempted to serve as witnesses in his defense, it would appear to the public as if we had helped him."  
  
Hermione's face fell at this. "So what can we do?"  
  
"I will take over from here since it is clear that you have no useful information for us," said Snape sarcastically as he got up from his seat. "Thank you Mr. Weasley."  
  
Percy frowned as he walked back towards his seat, letting Snape take the center.  
  
"There are two possibilities at the moment. Either the headmaster will win his case and will be freed or he will be found guilty and imprisoned," Snape explained. "The latter is looking more likely by the moment based on what information Mr. Weasley has given us. However if he is imprisoned, it is likely that he will be placed in Azkaban."  
  
"Over the holidays, I was called to a meeting with the Death Eaters. During that meeting, the Dark Lord laid out his plans for us which includes the disposal of the headmaster."  
  
"The first part will be getting Lucius Malfoy to bribe the jury so that they will unanimously declare the headmaster guilty."  
  
Several gasps were heard around the room but Snape ignored them and continued on, "He will then transfer him to another unknown location before transferring him to Azkaban for execution. It is during this transfer that will provide us with the best opportunity to rescue him."  
  
"So how do you propose we go about this?" McGonagall asked.  
  
"I was getting to that Minerva," Snape replied, pulling out his wand and creating an illusion of a man with a shrewd and calculating look and a pointed nose in a blue suit, white dress shirt, scarlet tie, black pointed shoes, a black cloak, and a black top hat. To Harry, he looked almost like a member of the board of directors at a bank. "This is Avery. He's a death eater spy within the Ministry of Magic and works for the department of Magical Transportation. If anyone would know where they would be taking the headmaster, it would be him."  
  
"How do you know whether or not he would know about the headmaster?" Sepet asked. "I would think Lucius would be a better choice."  
  
"The dark lord must keep an eye on the Fudge somehow and since Avery was acquitted of being a Death Eater due to insufficient evidence against him, he would still have the means through which he can collect information and pass it to the Dark Lord. Especially prisoner information seeing as his department handles prisoner transport as well. Lucius on the other hand wouldn't be able to pass any information on prisoners with the department he works for." Sepet nodded his head slowly and whispered something inaudible to Walter.  
  
"Our objective will be to abduct Avery and question him under Veritaserum. However first we must follow him and learn about his habits. Sirius and Arabella, you will take care of that."  
  
Sirius and Arabella nodded their heads in acknowledgement.  
  
"Once that's done we can then commence this operation. How long do you think you two can have the information we need?"  
  
"I'd expect about a month and a half from now," Arabella replied.  
  
"That should be perfect."  
  
Snape then returned to his seat and McGonagall stood up to address them. "If there are no further questions, this meeting is adjourned."  
  
Everyone stood up and filed out of the room though Sirius pulled Harry aside.  
  
"I probably won't see you for a while so take good care of yourself ok?" Sirius said.  
  
Harry grinned. "Sure thing. Take care of yourself too Sirius and don't get caught."  
  
Sirius beamed back at Harry. "They haven't caught me ever since I've escaped and I will keep it that way."  
  
Sirius then left the room and Harry joined Hermione and Cho who were waiting by the door.  
  
"What was that about?" Cho asked.  
  
"Oh, Sirius is my godfather. He just wanted me to be careful while he's away," Harry explained.  
  
"We should be getting back to the common room Harry, I need to go on my rounds with Ron later tonight," Hermione said.  
  
"All right, I'll see you later Cho."  
  
Cho gave Harry a quick hug and said good night before running out the door.  
  
Harry gave Hermione a confused look and the two of them made their exit and returned to the common room.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A/N: All right! I'm on vacation now! Starting today, I'm going to work hard to finish this story. Hopefully by Christmas. One question though: Does anyone know what would happen if you used the Avada Kedavra curse on a vampire? I mean they're already dead so would it work and "kill them" or would they just absorb it and nothing would happen?  
  
Phoenix of Light: Thanks for reviewing. Hope to bring you the best story ever.  
  
Desert Hacker: Good idea for the flames. I'll do that and I hope that you keep reading.  
  
" ": Hermione will end up with Harry, though I dunno if I'll do it in this book cuz I'm not entirely sure if Harry is ready for that yet.  
  
GryffinndorGirl: Glad you like the drama. There's more to come.  
  
Darkest-Knight88: Wow, Thanks for the great review and for pointing out the error in the chapter. It's been fixed. As for the Necromancer, if you want to use it, go ahead cuz I'm not the first to put a Necromancer in a fanfic and it wouldn't be fair if I didn't let you use it though I think I'm the only one who put a vampire and a Necromancer in the same story. The Mirror's prediction, hmm you may or may not be correct. There are two possible outcomes with that one but I may leave it to the readers to decide when the time comes. You are the first to bring that up. The only other people though the Armageddon spell was overkill but hey, I like it. Best way to go if you want to go in a blaze of glory.  
  
Marba50: If Harry doesn't get with Hermione this book, he'll be paired up with someone that'll at least be acceptable by Rowling's standards. As for the amulets the 3rd party can listen in when Harry and Hermione are talking. Otherwise the 3rd party couldn't have interrupted when they did and know exactly what they were looking for.  
  
BayBee05: Thanks for reviewing though I'm not entirely sure if Harry/Hermione will get together in this book cuz I don't think Hermione realizes who she loves yet and I prefer to build it up very slowly. Please keep reading though.  
  
Eleya Hynin: Thanks for reviewing. Keep reading and I will keep writing.  
  
Dark Golo: Short review or long review, doesn't matter. Glad you like the chapter and I hope that you'll keep reading until I finish this book.  
  
Blackdragoneye: Thanks for the review and for reminding me about the Basilisk transformation. I still hadn't thought of something useful for it though but I'll see what I can come up with sometime before the end of this book and Hermione's form will play a large part later. That I've already thought of.  
  
Jimbob the Cucumber Man: Patience buddy. The summary says H/hr and it is H/hr in the sense that I've been leaving Ron out for the most part. Besides, I think it'd be interesting to see what happens if Harry's competition for Hermione's affection is his best friend and how he'd deal with it. Also the relationships that build up slowly tend to last longer.  
  
Kal_23: Wow, you'd be the 2nd person to say that they thought that my fanfic was the real copy. Its good to know that I'm doing a good job if its that convincing. Thank you. I dunno about Rowling reading this and getting some ideas from it though. Its very unlikely that she would since this is one out of 100,000+ fanfics so the odds aren't in my favour at all. As for H/Hr getting together, you'll have to read the rest of the story for that. However if they don't get together in this book, they will get together later and Harry will be put with someone who'll be worth having.  
  
Gravier: Ron replacing Malfoy as a member hmm, not a bad idea.. I think I'll put that in at some point. Thanks for the suggestions. 


	28. Chapter 26: Close Call

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling.  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 26: Close Call  
  
Ever since Harry had gotten news that Dumbledore was to be tried and then later executed by Voldemort at Azkaban, Harry was feeling rather uneasy about the future since it had been Dumbledore who had guided him throughout his time at Hogwarts. Without Dumbledore, what chance did the wizarding world have against Voldemort? Hermione and Cho saw this and did their best to take his mind away from those thoughts and for this, he was grateful.  
  
Quidditch was also coming up soon and up until the day of the Quidditch match against Hufflepuff, Alicia drilled the team daily. Cho also started visiting him everyday at practice and the two of them started talking and getting to know each other better.  
  
On the morning of the Quidditch match, Harry awoke to hear the sound of heavy rain falling outside. His dorm mates, Dean, Neville and Seamus were already awake and getting dressed.  
  
"Morning Harry," Seamus greeted him as he finished putting on his school robes. "Ready for the game today?"  
  
"Morning Seamus, you bet," Harry replied, dragging himself out of bed.  
  
Harry immediately got dressed and the rest of them went to wake Ron up but not without incident. Ron flailed his arms about, whacking a few of them in the face as they drug him out of his bed and dumped him on the floor.  
  
"OW! I'm awake!" Ron exclaimed as he landed on the floor with a thud. "You didn't have to go and drag me out of bed."  
  
"We have a Quidditch game today and you need to eat breakfast," Dean said with a wide grin on his face. "Didn't look like you were going to wake up anytime soon so we didn't have much choice."  
  
Ron shook his head and got up off the floor to get dressed. Then the five boys went down to the common room where Hermione joined them to go to breakfast.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Breakfast was relatively uneventful for Harry though Ron kept trying to stuff himself again with a bit of everything present at the table.  
  
"Ron, you shouldn't eat so much," Hermione said. "It'll affect your ability to play Quidditch."  
  
"Relax Hermione," Ron said in between bites. "I'll be fine. A little food isn't going to kill me."  
  
Hermione rolled her eyes. "You'll never learn will you?"  
  
Ron grinned. "Nope."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
After breakfast, Harry and Ron bid goodbye to Hermione and made their way to the lockers so that they could change into their Quidditch robes.  
  
However along the way, they ran into Cho who greeted Harry with a warm smile.  
  
"Hi Harry, I just wanted to wish you good luck against Hufflepuff."  
  
"Thanks Cho," Harry said, grinning at her. "I'll catch the snitch for you."  
  
Cho blushed. "Sure."  
  
"Come on Harry," Ron urged. "We don't want to miss the game."  
  
"I'll see you after the game ok Cho?" Harry said as Ron tugged at his sleeve.  
  
"All right, after the game then," Cho said and she made her way towards the Ravenclaw stands.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
As the teams walked out onto the Quidditch pitch in the heavy rain, Harry noticed that there were skeletons standing around the field, about one every two feet. Each one was carrying a bow and a full quiver of arrows.  
  
Madam Hooch called the teams to the centre of the field and the captains shook hands.  
  
"Mount your brooms!" Madam Hooch shouted and fourteen brooms lifted into the air.  
  
"Let's try to end this quickly Harry," Harry heard Ron say next to him. "I don't feel comfortable with all those skeletons lining the walls. I think Walter is expecting some trouble."  
  
Harry glanced at his ring to see that it wasn't glowing. "There doesn't seem to be any danger Ron but you're right. I don't like playing in this weather anymore than the next person."  
  
Ron flew over to Alicia and Harry flew upwards and out of trouble.  
  
The snitch was released and it made one pass in front of Harry and Anthony Goldstein, the new Hufflepuff seeker, before flying out of sight into the rain.  
  
A whistle was heard and the Quaffle was thrown into the air. Alicia caught it immediately and sped towards the Hufflepuff goal posts with Ron following close behind. She dropped it to Ron who threw it into the far right hoop, scoring 10 points for Gryffindor.  
  
Thunder was heard overhead and a flash of lightning illuminated the field, revealing a small golden object next to the Gryffindor goal posts.  
  
Harry dived down, hoping to catch the attention of the Hufflepuff seeker. Unfortunately the seeker didn't dive after him and Harry pulled out of the dive. Only when he sped towards the snitch did the Hufflepuff seeker turn to follow.  
  
Although the other seeker was on a slower broom, the Hufflepuff team was well coordinated and both beaters kept hitting the bludgers in Harry's direction forcing him to dodge them.  
  
Another flash of lightning was seen followed immediately by a clap of thunder and it brightened the sky just in time for Harry to see a bludger coming towards his head and flip upside down on his broom to avoid it.  
  
Lee Jordan's voice could barely be heard over the sound of rain and thunder but a cheer was heard coming from the Gryffindor stands and he could only assume that they had scored again.  
  
Harry was almost to the snitch and he averted his attention for a moment to see how far back the other seeker was. Somehow he had almost caught up and was almost right on Harry's tail so Harry leaned forward and urged his Firebolt on towards the snitch.  
  
Harry put out a hand so that he could catch the snitch and as his hands closed around it, a flash of lightning illuminated the sky again and an explosion was heard next to him just as the sound of thunder filled the darkened sky.  
  
A stabbing pain was felt in his side and Harry looked down in time to see that there was a piece of iron shrapnel sticking out of his side and that the wound was bleeding profusely, drenching his loser body in blood. The Hufflepuff seeker was also hit and Harry was starting to lose consciousness from blood loss.  
  
Despite his impaired vision, Harry somehow managed to land his broom and tumble to the ground. The last thing he heard before he completely blackened out was the sound of some girls going hysterical around him and Cho's voice calling his name.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When Harry finally regained consciousness, the first thing he saw was Mrs. Weasley sitting by his side and that he was in the Hospital Wing with a throbbing headache. The window was darkened and torches were burning so Harry could only assume that it was night time but he hadn't a clue as to what day it was.  
  
Upon hearing him stir in the hospital bed, Mrs. Weasley's face broke into a relieved smile.  
  
"Good to see that you're back with us Harry dear," Mrs. Weasley said. "You've been out for about a week."  
  
"Thank you Mrs. Weasley. What happened?"  
  
"I'm not sure but you can ask Ron and Hermione when they come to visit you. They've been visiting you each day to see if you've awoken. There was also that lovely Asian girl who had been coming to visit you everyday. I don't remember her name though."  
  
"Cho," Harry said, smiling weakly.  
  
"There we go. Anyway, they've asked me to tell them if you've woken while they weren't here. Madam Pomfrey would only let them visit for a couple minutes each day and even then it was to bring you your homework," Mrs. Weasley explained. "Both Hermione and Cho cried when they brought you in here. It's good to know that you have friends that care so much for you."  
  
Harry smiled and nodded his head. Surprisingly his body was still in one piece and when he looked under the blankets, he saw that his side was completely healed without a trace.  
  
"I'll go get your friends for you," said Mrs. Weasley. "I'll see you in a bit dear."  
  
With that, Mrs. Weasley got up and kissed Harry on the forehead before exiting the Hospital Wing.  
  
Madam Pomfrey entered the room soon after Mrs. Weasley left and administered a few potions to him and brought him some dinner. She didn't utter a word the entire time and eventually she retreated quietly into her office.  
  
This gave Harry a chance to look around at his surroundings as he hungrily wolfed down the food on the tray. The bed next to him was occupied by the Hufflepuff seeker but none of the other beds seemed to be occupied. His sword, ring, amulet, and wand were sitting on the nightstand to his left apparently untouched.  
  
Moments later, Hermione and Ron entered the Hospital Wing with Mrs. Weasley. Hermione immediately ran over to Harry and threw her arms around his neck, bursting into tears.  
  
"Oh Harry," she cried. "I was so worried that you might have died. You had lost so much blood along the way here."  
  
Harry smiled and patted her on the back with one arm. "It's okay Hermione, I'll be fine."  
  
Hermione nodded into his chest and pulled away slowly, drying her tears with her hands.  
  
Ron was the next to greet him. "How are you doing mate?"  
  
"I still have a throbbing headache but otherwise I'm doing okay I guess. What happened though?"  
  
"A bolt of lightning struck a bludger that was heading for you and it exploded, sending shards everywhere. Several students suffered minor injuries in the stands but not as bad as yours. Fawkes was nice enough to provide some Phoenix tears to help heal your injuries."  
  
"That explains why there aren't any scars. Am I allowed to leave?"  
  
"I'm not sure," Mrs. Weasley replied. "I'll go ask Madam Pomfrey."  
  
While Mrs. Weasley went to do that, taking Harry's empty food tray with her, Hermione related all that had happened while he was unconscious. Malfoy was up and around apparently and taunted Ron and Hermione everyday about how he hoped that Harry would die.  
  
Hermione also told him how Cho got fed up with Malfoy's taunting one day at lunch and used a confusion hex on him again causing his two goons to send him back to the Hospital Wing for a few days but not before they chased him through the halls and cornered him in the broom closet where they beat their leader senseless.  
  
Harry burst out laughing at that since he had seen Cho use the confusion hex on Malfoy during the train ride to Hogwarts and the results were very humiliating for Malfoy.  
  
Mrs. Weasley came into the room afterwards and informed Harry that Madam Pomfrey wanted him to stay in the room for one more night and he would be released the next morning for classes.  
  
The door opened once again and Cho entered the Hospital Wing for her daily visit. She was surprised to see that Ron and Hermione were already there but approached Harry's bed nevertheless.  
  
"Hullo Harry," said Cho. "How are you feeling?"  
  
"I'm doing just fine Cho, how about you?"  
  
"Relieved that you're back with us," replied Cho. "I was worried that I'd lost you too."  
  
A mischievous smile crept upon Harry's face. "I'll take more than an exploding bludger to kill me Cho. At least I caught the snitch for you."  
  
Cho let out a slight laugh and nodded. There was a moment of silence between the five of them in the Hospital wing but it was Mrs. Weasley who eventually broke it.  
  
"I think dinner should be ready soon," said Mrs. Weasley, ushering them towards the door. "You should all be heading to the Great Hall. Will you be ok without me Harry?"  
  
"Yes Mrs. Weasley, thank you."  
  
"Can I have a few words with Harry?" Cho asked Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"Well." Mrs. Weasley said slowly. ". I suppose it'd be all right with Madam Pomfrey if you had a few minutes with Harry."  
  
"Thanks Mrs. Weasley," Cho said and sat down in the chair next to Harry's bed.  
  
Hermione and Ron said goodbye to Harry and followed Mrs. Weasley out of the Hospital Wing. Then Harry turned to Cho.  
  
"So what's on your mind Cho?"  
  
"I was wondering if we were still planning on going to Hogsmeade next week to go pick out our outfits for the ball."  
  
"Of course, I wouldn't want to miss it," replied Harry.  
  
"Would you happen to know if Sirius is making any progress on his mission?" Harry asked.  
  
"No, I wouldn't. I assume his mission is going well and he can't write. We had another meeting while you were out and Professor Sepet has decided to go check on him, why do you ask?"  
  
"Just wondering. Sirius is my godfather after all and I'm just worried," Harry said.  
  
"That's understandable but I'm sure that your godfather is doing just fine. If not, Professor Sepet is more than capable of helping him."  
  
Harry nodded uncertainly. "Thanks Cho."  
  
Cho smiled at him and got up from the chair next to Harry's bed. "Well, I should be going to dinner before everyone asks where I am. I'll see you later ok Harry?"  
  
"Sure - bye Cho."  
  
Cho gave Harry a quick hug then made her way out of the Hospital Wing.  
  
Harry sighed and looked around for a moment. There was an empty bowl on the nightstand of the bed to his right. He used his wand to summon it to him and he used the create drink spell to fill it with water. He drank some of it and got up off the bed to set it on the floor.  
  
Then he pointed his wand at it and summoned the water guardian. The bowl started to fill up and soon overflowed onto the floor before gathering itself up again to form the feminine figure of the water guardian.  
  
*Hullo Harry * said the water guardian. *How are you doing? Make any progress with Hermione?*  
  
"I've decided to give up on her. It appears she likes Ron not me."  
  
*I see * said the guardian. Although it was a bit hard to decipher any facial expression on the guardian's face, Harry could still make out the faint lines of her mouth form into a frown. *So what do you plan to do? *  
  
"There's a ball coming up soon and I'm going with this pretty Ravenclaw girl, Cho. She's got a great personality too," Harry told the guardian. "Problem is I don't know how to dance and I was wondering if you knew how to dance and if you could teach me."  
  
*Oooh, * said the water guardian delightedly. *I'd be more than happy to do so. In fact, I'll teach you everyday until the day of the dance but there's one catch. *  
  
"What's that?"  
  
*Find me a date to the ball. I'd like to go too. *  
  
Harry was rather astounded by the guardian's request but if he didn't want to make a fool of himself at the ball, he didn't have much of a choice. "You drive a hard bargain but you have a deal."  
  
*Thank you so much Harry. * said the water guardian. *Now let's get started, ok?*  
  
"Uh, now?"  
  
*Sure, why not. I mean no one's in here and there's a large space in the middle of the room. *  
  
"All right but don't you need to be in human form?"  
  
*No, you'll still be able to touch me. How else do you think I was supposed to give you a bath if I couldn't touch you in this form? *  
  
Harry blushed slightly. "Good point."  
  
They walked to the centre of the Hospital Wing and faced each other. The water guardian placed Harry's right hand on her waist and took his left hand in hers. Then she placed her left arm on his shoulder.  
  
*I assume this will be a formal ball so we must observe the proper forms. For now, I'll teach you the basics and later we can move to more advanced steps. *  
  
"You sound like Hermione."  
  
The water guardian laughed. *I hope that's a compliment otherwise I'll have to punish you. *  
  
"It is since she likes doing things the proper way."  
  
*I'll lead this time but when you're at the ball, you better lead if you don't want to make a fool of yourself. * the water guardian said. *Now then, follow as I tell you. *  
  
For the next hour or so, the water guardian guided Harry through the basics. Harry stumbled a few times and stepped on the water guardian's feet a few times but at the end of the session, he had some of the basics down.  
  
*Not bad for a first try Harry, not bad at all. You're doing better than my previous master. He was simply horrible when it came to dancing. It took him nearly weeks to learn what you've learned in a few hours and even then I still had to tell him not to step on my toes. I may not feel pain but it's not a good thing if you're stepping on the toes of your date. Anyway, I'm sure its getting late and you'll want to get some sleep. I'll see you tomorrow Harry. Good night. *  
  
With that, the water guardian disappeared back into the bowl of water and Harry replaced the bowl on the nightstand where it was before. Then he climbed back into bed and lay there going over the dance steps in his mind as well as figuring out who the water guardian could go with.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Hours later, after all the torches were extinguished in the room and only the fireplace was left burning, Harry was still awake. He couldn't sleep as his mind drifted back to the Order's upcoming mission and their rescue of Dumbledore. There was a crack of light coming from the hallway through the entrance to the Hospital wing and the last quarter of the moon was shining brightly through the window on the other end.  
  
Harry heard a creak at the door and the amount of light increased, slowly at first, but then the door swung open and a figure dressed in black plate armour entered the room. Walter walked towards Madam Pomfrey's office and Madam Pomfrey came out to meet him. She produced a dark flask from her robe with some type of liquid in it and handed it to Walter who took it willingly.  
  
"Thank you Madam Pomfrey," Harry heard Walter say. "The International Ministry is grateful for your services."  
  
"International Ministry indeed," Madam Pomfrey huffed. "This 'service' is getting very costly."  
  
"Here is some compensation for your trouble," Walter said and he handed Madam Pomfrey a small bag which she took and stuffed in her robe but not before a clinking noise was heard from within the bag.  
  
Walter looked in the direction of Harry's bed for a moment before looking back towards Madam Pomfrey. "I'll post guards here tonight for the safety of the students."  
  
"Your guards," Madam Pomfrey scoffed. "Haven't prevented whatever it is from getting in here last time, what makes you think they'll work this time?"  
  
Walter said nothing and bowed slightly to her before exiting the Hospital wing with the flask in hand. Madam Pomfrey then closed the door behind him and re-entered her office. Soon snoring was heard coming from the office and Harry could only guess that Madam Pomfrey was asleep.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Harry eventually drifted off to sleep but hours later, the loud clatter of metal on stone was heard and there was a moment of silence. The door to the hospital wing creaked open again and a red glow filled his section of the Hospital wing. Apparently the glow was coming from his nightstand and Harry turned his eyes in the direction of the nightstand to see his ring glowing brightly.  
  
A feminine figure dressed completely in a white nightgown entered the room and slowly walked towards Harry's bed. As the figure got closer and entered the moonlight, Harry could finally make the figure out to be Parvati.  
  
Parvati slowly continued to stalk towards Harry's bed and she paused for a moment as if she heard something behind her. Just in case Parvati's sight at night was better than he thought, Harry closed his eyelids until there was only a narrow slit through which he could see through.  
  
Harry heard Parvati sniff the air as if she sensed something else in the room and Harry glanced around the room as much as his field of vision would allow only to see empty air. Parvati must have not seen anything either for she continued on until she was at the head of Harry's bed.  
  
In the moonlight Parvati's face was simply terrifying and it took a great effort on Harry's part to avoid shouting and possibly having Parvati kill him on the spot since he was unarmed.  
  
Two sharp, pearly-white fangs protruded from Parvati's mouth and came to rest over her lower lip. Then with a vicious smile upon her face, Parvati bent down and kissed him on the lips before continuing on lower to where Harry's neck would be.  
  
"Don't worry Harry, you'll soon be one of us. I promise it won hurt," Parvati whispered as she placed her lips on Harry's neck.  
  
However before she could bite into him, something tackled Parvati into the wall. Harry didn't see what had tackled Parvati but it was clear that it was something invisible as Parvati was wrestling on the ground with something.  
  
She rolled into the nightstand causing the bowl upon it to fall to the ground and shatter. A voice was heard coming from Madam Pomfrey's office and eventually Madam Pomfrey emerged from her office with her wand drawn.  
  
"Who's there?" she asked. "I'll warn you, I'm armed."  
  
Seeing that she could be cornered, Parvati disengaged with her invisible opponent and ran past Madam Pomfrey who fired a stunning spell uselessly after her as Parvati bolted out the door.  
  
The glow on Harry's ring subsided and moments later Walter entered the room again and Madam Pomfrey went over to scold him.  
  
"I told you that your guards were useless. Those things still get in here, whatever they are," she complained.  
  
Walter looked rather embarrassed. "My apologies Madam Pomfrey, it was only a vampire. I will stand guard here personally and see to it that nothing else gets in."  
  
"See to it that nothing does. I don't need more students getting injured tonight, much less a teacher," Madam Pomfrey said and went over to clear up the shattered bowl and rearrange the nightstand before retiring to her office once again.  
  
Walter shook his head and formed a spear in his hand. Then he exited the Hospital wing and closed the door behind him.  
  
Once the Hospital wing was silent again, Harry heard a faint voice call his name.  
  
"Harry?" a female voice whispered that sounded very much like Hermione.  
  
"Hermione?" he whispered back. "Hermione, where are you?"  
  
A wand came into view and a 'finite incantatem' was heard as the wand came down to reveal Hermione in her pyjamas.  
  
"I see you used the invisibility spell," Harry stated. "Where's Ron?"  
  
"Ron is still asleep," Hermione explained. "I didn't have time to go wake him up or retrieve your cloak so I had to use the invisibility spell to follow Parvati."  
  
"I'm sorry Harry," Hermione apologized. "I lost her for a moment and I thought I was too late and that Parvati had bitten you. Then when I came in here, I was thinking of how strong a vampire was compared to me and I hesitated."  
  
"No need to apologize Hermione," Harry reassured her. "But how did you know she was coming here?"  
  
"Well, when I saw her sneak out of the room, I figured there were two possible places that had students which she could easily gain access to; the Gryffindor tower itself or here. But since she exited the Gryffindor tower, I figured that you would be the more logical choice. What better way to defeat you than to make you one of them?"  
  
Harry grinned, "You were always the logical one."  
  
Hermione returned his smile and went over to hug him. "I'm glad you're safe. Walter is standing guard now and there shouldn't be anymore unexpected visitors."  
  
"You're stuck here though," Harry pointed out.  
  
"You're right," Hermione agreed, pulling out of the hug. "I hadn't counted on getting stuck in here but I don't mind. At least I'll be content with the fact that you are safe."  
  
"There are extra beds so finding a place to sleep won't be a problem. Just pick one."  
  
Hermione nodded and slipped into the empty bed to his right. "Good night Harry."  
  
"Good night Hermione," Harry whispered back and stared in her direction.  
  
Once Harry was certain that Hermione was asleep, he too closed his eyes and fell into a peaceful sleep.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A/N: All right, this chapter was posted a lot quicker than the previous ones though it's slightly shorter. I'll try to keep this pace up and hopefully the story will be finished soon. Quidditch was kept to a minimum this time as requested.  
  
Temporary Insanity: Thanks for your theories on what would happen if you used Avada Kedavra on a vampire. I think I'll have use for that at some point.  
  
steviej1026: Thanks for the review.  
  
Phoenix of Light: Are you certain that I will put a Harry/Herm pairing at some point? You'd be right though not in this book cuz I've been going along with some of the information that Rowling said in her interviews when it came to dealing with the couples. She did say that there was something going on between Ron and Hermione so that means she's going to put them together for at least one book. That's what I've been doing here though I've also set it up so that there's room for change. Though by now I'd expect people already know where the romance aspect is heading in this book and I'll probably lose readers since they've been reading it for only the H/Hr instead of the plot but eh, oh well.  
  
Vjpdevesa: Hmm, keep Harry/Cho and have Hermione question her feelings for Harry in the next book.. Not a bad idea. I may do that. It'd certainly make a lot of sense.  
  
Quis: Thanks for the compliment and for pointing out the error, it's been corrected. Quite a few reviewers have been telling me that this ff could pass as the real thing or they've thought it was a real copy that I'd somehow obtained. However this would never be the real Harry Potter story since Rowling holds the copyrights to that one and I could never publish this. Eh, I may decide to write book at some point, the style will have to be different than this and I do have part of the plot ready. The plot will still have at least the same number of twists I've been putting in it, maybe even more. The only thing is that it'll probably be more violent than this ff.  
  
The dragon master: If you want to write a fanfic using the spells at the beginning, ask me again with a signed review before you write it. Only then will I give you an answer. 


	29. Chapter 27: Hogsmeade

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling.  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 27: Hogsmeade  
  
Harry was released from the Hospital Wing the day after Hermione had come to rescue him from Parvati though Madam Pomfrey seemed more than happy to get rid of him this time. After nearly being bitten by Parvati, Harry was more wary about going to sleep each night. Hermione saw this and helped him put him at rest by assuring him that she would make sure that nothing would happen to him.  
  
Since the O.W.L.s were coming up in May, the teachers began to drill the students more rigorously to make sure they knew the material. However oddly enough, Walter and Sepet were absent during some of their classes and Harry was left wondering where they were.  
  
The Water Guardian kept her part of the bargain and instructed Harry on dancing each evening in an empty classroom though Harry was still stumped as to who she could go to the ball with. Some of the students still hadn't found dates yet but Harry was quite surprised to find that Neville was going with Ginny again.  
  
At the end of the week, the students were allowed to go to Hogsmeade to shop for their outfits for the ball. Although Harry was a little disappointed that Hermione would be going with Ron, he was still looking forward to going with Cho.  
  
On Saturday morning, Harry awoke slowly to the familiar scene of his dorm room. Crawling out of bed, Harry lazily made his way to the bathroom to shower and changed into his school uniform and buckling his sword belt under it before going down to the common room to wait for Ron and Hermione.  
  
Once Ron and Hermione came down, the three of them went down to breakfast.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A bit into breakfast, Cho came to join them dressed in her school uniform.  
  
"Hi Harry," she said.  
  
Harry returned her greeting happily and offered her a seat next to him which she took gladly.  
  
"Hi Cho," said Hermione, sitting next to Ron across the table. "Will you be joining us for the trip to Hogsmeade today?"  
  
Cho nodded. "Yes I am. I was also wondering if you'd like to go together to shop for our dress robes for the ball while the guys search for theirs, how does that sound?"  
  
"Sure, I'd love to but Ron already has some brand new dress robes that his brothers were nice enough to get for him," Hermione replied.  
  
"That's okay," Harry chimed in. "Ron can help me look for mine. I'm not entirely sure what I should wear."  
  
"I think I'll go for something in red," Cho said thoughtfully. "What do you think?"  
  
"You'll look great in red," Hermione agreed, putting a forkful of scrambled eggs into her mouth.  
  
At that moment, Professor McGonagall entered the Great Hall. "Would all the students planning on going to Hogsmeade this weekend please follow me."  
  
"Time to go," Harry said finishing up the last of his breakfast and got up from his seat, extending a hand to Cho to help her up. She took it gladly and the two of them walked side by side to the carriages with Ron and Hermione following closely behind.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Outside, the horseless carriages were already waiting for the students to take them to Hogsmeade. However flanking each carriage were four skeletons in groups of two. Half the skeletons were carrying fireballs and the other half were wielding swords and shields. Walter was standing outside the lead carriage offering his hand to Professor McGonagall and helping her into the carriage with Hagrid following soon after.  
  
Walter then signalled to the skeletons and all at the same time, the skeletons carrying fireballs on the side facing the side of the school dispelled their fireballs and opened the carriage doors.  
  
"Harry, would you mind if Hermione and I went together in our own carriage?" Ron asked him from behind.  
  
"Sure Ron, I don't mind," Harry replied though he was somewhat dismayed by the thought.  
  
"There's an open carriage there Harry," Cho pointed out. "Let's go before it's taken."  
  
Harry and Cho made their way towards the carriage but as fortune would have it, Malfoy and Pansy arrived a bit after they did with Crabbe and Goyle on either side of them.  
  
"Back off Potter," Malfoy announced, "This carriage is ours."  
  
"We got here first Malfoy," Harry said coolly. "I believe that we have the right to sit in this carriage."  
  
At that point, Malfoy noticed Cho. "I didn't know that Chang here took a liking to you Potter. It's probably because she feels sorry for you since Weasel stole your mudblood girlfriend from you."  
  
"I suggest you go away Malfoy," Cho cut in smirking mischievously, "I'm sure you don't want to find yourself in the hospital wing before we get the chance to leave the school."  
  
"Not this time Chang - Crabbe - Goyle, secure this carriage for us," Malfoy ordered his two goons.  
  
Crabbe and Goyle lumbered towards Cho and Harry who reached for their wands in their robe, however they soon found they didn't have to for the skeletons around them apparently sensed hostility and moved to act.  
  
Two seconds later, Crabbe and Goyle found themselves surrounded by armed skeletons, some of them ready to hurl their burning fireballs at them.  
  
Seeing his skeletons moving out of formation, Walter made his way over to their carriage to see what was causing the disturbance.  
  
"Is there a problem here?" Walter asked as the circle of skeletons parted to allow him to walk through.  
  
Malfoy's goons shook their heads and turned to their leader for instructions.  
  
"No Professor," Malfoy said trying to sound as victimized as possible. "I was going to enter this carriage with Pansy but Potter here wouldn't let us."  
  
"Then I suggest that you all get into the carriage together before they are all taken," said Walter.  
  
Harry glared at Malfoy and extended a hand to help Cho into the carriage before entering himself, putting his sword across his lap before he sat down. Malfoy and Pansy entered soon after them but Crabbe and Goyle were forced to sit in another carriage by Walter.  
  
At Walter's command, the skeletons closed the doors to the carriages with the exception of the last carriage and the convoy started moving in the direction of Hogsmeade. Walter watched each carriage pass to ensure that everything was going well and as the last carriage passed, he hopped into it and closed the door behind him.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Just what I needed," Malfoy said bitterly. "A trip to Hogsmeade with Potter."  
  
"It's not our fault," Harry shot back. "You were the one that wanted to sit in this carriage."  
  
"Only because you don't deserve to ride in one Potter. You should be walking alongside the carriages with the rest of these servants. In fact, Weasel should join you too since he's servant material. Too poor to afford anything."  
  
"That's enough Malfoy," Cho threatened. "We may not be outside and your friends may not be in here but I still have my wand and I'm sure you wouldn't want to have rumours going around that you were beaten senseless by your girlfriend."  
  
Malfoy opened his mouth to respond but shut it again once the thought of Pansy slapping him around the carriage registered in his mind. Cho gave Malfoy a smug smile and leaned back into her seat, keeping one hand on her wand the entire time. For his part, Harry was a bit paranoid that Malfoy might start some trouble since he did have his hand on his wand so Harry did likewise and kept his hand on his wand.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they arrived in Hogsmeade, Harry and Malfoy glared at each other as they got out on opposite sides of the carriage, keeping their one hand on their wands at all times. Cho and Pansy then made their exit afterwards while the two boys kept an eye on their rival. Crabbe and Goyle soon joined their irritable leader but they both looked a bit frightened with all of the armed skeletons around them.  
  
"Hey Harry," he heard Hermione call from the left. "Over here!"  
  
Harry and Cho ran over to join Ron and Hermione.  
  
"How was the ride?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Simply horrible," Harry replied. "We had to sit with Malfoy and Pansy."  
  
Hermione gasped. "I'm sorry, next time you'll definitely get to sit with us."  
  
"I agree," Ron said. "Having to ride with Malfoy would be absolutely dreadful."  
  
"It wasn't that bad. Cho kept him quiet the entire time by threatening to use the confusion hex on him while Pansy was there," Harry said with a laugh. "That would mean that he'd get beaten senseless by her and I don't think he would enjoy that too much."  
  
Hermione and Ron laughed at this and the four of them started to walking along the dirt road.  
  
"Where would you like to go first?" Ron asked Hermione. "Let me guess. the bookstore?"  
  
Hermione smiled at him. "Where else do you think I want to go silly?"  
  
Ron sighed. "Typical Hermione but I'll put up with it this time - lead the way."  
  
Harry gave Ron a quizzical look for he knew how much Ron hated going to the bookstore. If nothing else Ron would rather have gone to the joke shop.  
  
"Harry," Cho said. "Can we go to Honeydukes? I want to get some chocolate from there."  
  
"Sure Cho - How about we meet back here in two hours for lunch?" Harry suggested to Ron and Hermione.  
  
"All right," Hermione agreed. "We'll meet you back here in two hours."  
  
With that Ron and Hermione headed towards the bookstore while Harry and Cho headed over to Honeydukes to browse around.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
At Honeydukes, Harry and Cho ran into Dean and Seamus.  
  
"Hey Harry, what are you doing here?" Seamus asked but then he noticed Cho. "Oh, I see you're with Cho. What happened to Hermione?"  
  
"She's off with Ron at the bookstore," Harry explained. "Cho wanted to come here and I didn't mind."  
  
"I see, so are you two together?" Dean asked curiously.  
  
Both Harry and Cho turned slightly red. "No, we're only here together because we want to look for our dress robes for the ball."  
  
"Lucky you," said Dean, grabbing a box of chocolates. "We don't have dates yet but we have a few girls in mind. These chocolates should help."  
  
"Who are you planning to ask?"  
  
"I'm going to ask Parvati," Seamus announced. "Dean is going to ask her sister, Padma. I mean they're the best looking girls in our year, why wouldn't we ask them?"  
  
Harry looked at Seamus as if he was on his deathbed. Seamus had no idea that Parvati was a vampire and would probably get bitten.  
  
"Uh Sea...," Harry started to say.  
  
"Still.," Dean interrupted. "I wonder how you always manage to get the best looking girls around Harry."  
  
Harry and Cho turned even redder but Harry thought it might be best to press the point.  
  
"Seamus," Harry repeated. "I don't think asking Parvati is such a good idea."  
  
"Come on Harry, you can't have all the girls for yourself," Seamus said jokingly. "You went with her last year so let us have a chance."  
  
"That's not what I meant," Harry said quietly to himself but Cho overheard him.  
  
"What did you mean Harry?" Cho asked.  
  
"I'll explain later," Harry whispered. "You see Parvati isn't exactly normal anymore."  
  
Cho nodded uncertainly and Harry attempted once more to try to convince Seamus not to ask Parvati to the ball. "Seamus, haven't you noticed something wrong with Parvati lately?"  
  
"No, she looks a bit sick but she hasn't been bedridden yet. I mean she still joins us for meals and everything," Seamus argued. "It's not like she's going to die Harry. If I didn't know better, I'd say you were jealous."  
  
Harry let out a sigh and turned away, giving up all hopes of trying to convince Seamus.  
  
*You have no idea do you Seamus, * Harry thought as he led Cho away from Seamus.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Cho eventually settled on getting a box of chocolates and some sugar quills and the two of them exited the store.  
  
"How about we go to the joke shop next?" Cho suggested, offering him a sugar quill. "I think that will be more to your liking."  
  
Harry took it and grinned back. "Yes it would."  
  
They had about an hour and a half so the two of the headed over to the joke shop to browse around.  
  
Over there Harry and Cho saw Fred and George who were trying to get the shop owner to buy some of their canary creams.  
  
"Harry!" a voice called.  
  
Harry turned around to find Hermione and Ron looking around the shop as well.  
  
"Weren't you looking around at the bookstore?" asked Harry.  
  
"Hermione agreed to let me come here since I came with her to the bookstore," Ron explained. "I must say I was bored stiff but this is more to my liking."  
  
"Not my fault you agreed to come along," Hermione countered.  
  
"If I didn't know better," Cho whispered to Harry. "I'd say those two liked each other."  
  
Harry nodded and for the next hour or so they looked around the joke shop then the four students made their way over to the Three Broomsticks.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Hullo you four," Madam Rosmerta greeted them as they entered. "What can I get you?"  
  
"Four butterbeers please," Harry requested and they found a seat in a quiet corner of the pub; Harry sat next to Cho and Ron and Hermione took a seat across from them.  
  
Looking around, Harry noticed that the teachers were sitting at a table in the centre chatting idly amongst themselves. Walter was sitting next to Professor McGonagall who was laughing at a joke that Hagrid had told though Harry thought that Hagrid looked a bit drunk. Hagrid had a glass of red currant rum in front of him while McGonagall and Walter had butterbeers.  
  
"So how was the bookstore Hermione?" Cho was asking.  
  
"It was very interesting. I found some spellbooks that would have been great for transfiguration or charms but they cost too much," Hermione stated.  
  
"Really Hermione," Ron said. "You should get around more often instead of having your nose stuck in a book all day."  
  
"Ron, if you would read more often, your grades would be a lot better than they are now," Hermione scolded.  
  
Ron rolled his eyes. "I know, I know. You've told us that at least a hundred times, right Harry?"  
  
Harry nodded but something at the entrance to the Three Broomsticks caught his eye for Parvati had entered the pub with a hood over her face, much like Sepet did when he was walking around in the morning. Unfortunately Harry had forgotten his ring back at the dorm and so he didn't have any advanced warning that she was coming. Hermione however didn't forget and her ring was glowing a faint reddish colour.  
  
She sat down at a table next to the one the teachers were sitting at and ordered a butterbeer.  
  
"Isn't that Parvati, Padma's twin sister?" Cho asked Harry.  
  
Harry nodded.  
  
"That reminds me," Cho said, looking back at him. "Harry, what were you going to tell me about Parvati? She looks normal except that she's wearing a hood like Professor Sepet does when we go on our missions. Funny how those two seem to avoid sunlight."  
  
Harry leaned over to whisper in her ear. "Parvati and Sepet are vampires. That's why they don't like the sun."  
  
Cho looked a bit horrified. "But that means that..."  
  
Harry nodded. "Yes, the attacks that have occurred so far were because of them."  
  
"But how is it that they weren't turned into vampires too?" Cho asked.  
  
Finally noticing the conversation going on between Harry and Cho, Ron decided to jump in.  
  
"Walter saved Alicia though we thought he killed her," Ron said.  
  
"Filch was attacked too but Professor McGonagall made sure that he would be okay," Hermione added.  
  
"No wonder you were trying to convince Seamus not to ask Parvati," said Cho. "You wanted to make sure that she wouldn't attack him."  
  
"Seamus is going to ask Parvati to the ball?" Ron asked.  
  
"Yeah, we ran into him at Honeydukes and I tried to convince him not to go with Parvati but he didn't listen," said Harry.  
  
"Looks like we'll have to keep an eye out for him at the ball and make sure he doesn't get hurt," Hermione commented.  
  
"Only if Parvati says yes," Cho pointed out.  
  
"Say, I'm hungry," Ron said, changing the subject. "I say we order lunch, how about you?"  
  
Hermione rolled her eyes but agreed nonetheless and the four of them ordered something to eat.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
After lunch, the four of them headed over to Gladrags Wizardwear so that they could pick out their dress robes. Four witches greeted them as they entered the shop and the four of them broke into pairs so that the witches could measure them out for new robes. To Harry's annoyance, they argued for a bit over who would help him but eventually one of them wearing blue robes won out and ushered him towards one of the measuring areas.  
  
"I'm not looking for dress robes," Ron protested as a witch pulled him in the direction of the mirror. "They're for him."  
  
The witch looked disappointed but happily went to attend to Harry while the other two helped the girls pick out their robes.  
  
"Here are all the robes that we have Mr. Potter," the witch said handing him a book full of different robe designs. "Take your pick."  
  
With that, the witches left Harry to browse through the book. Ron was looking over his shoulder and pointing out designs he thought were good though Harry thought that some were rather appalling and wouldn't suit him.  
  
Eventually one of the designs caught his eye. It was a gold coloured dress robe with red trimming and a split on each side.  
  
"I think that would look good on your Mr. Potter," said a voice that caused Harry and Ron to jump. "Your house colours - very nice."  
  
Harry turned around to find himself looking at Walter who was also looking through the book for some dress robes.  
  
"You almost gave us a heart attack," Ron panted, checking his pulse to see if it was still there. "How is it that you always manage to sneak up on us?"  
  
"Bad habits from long ago," Walter said with a grin. "However I am also here to buy some dress robes."  
  
"Really?" asked Ron in disbelief.  
  
"Yes," Walter said. "Even professors and bodyguards need to look nice every now and then."  
  
"Have you settled upon a design?" Harry asked Walter.  
  
"Unfortunately not but I hope to find one before we return, otherwise I'll have to come back and look for them on my own time."  
  
At that moment the two witches returned and asked Harry if he was done which he gave them an affirmative answer. Then they spent the next few minutes getting Harry's measurements, taking his order down on parchment and getting him to pay for it.  
  
The robes were expensive but Harry thought it was worth the trouble.  
  
"Your robes will be delivered by owl," the witch told him. "They should be ready by the first week of February. If you need adjustments made afterwards, please give us an owl and we'll be over to make them personally."  
  
"Thank you," Harry said and he paid the bill.  
  
"I don't think Hermione and Cho are ready yet. Let's wait outside for them," Ron suggested.  
  
Then the two of them said good bye to Walter, who reminded them that they would be going back to the school in an hour, and exited the shop to wait for the girls.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
It was a while before Hermione and Cho came out with smiles on their faces.  
  
"We found the prettiest dress robes that you'll ever imagine," Cho told Harry. "I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at the ball."  
  
"Same with you Ron," Hermione added, "but I'm just digressing. How about we head back to the Three Broomsticks until we have to go back to school?"  
  
The boys grinned at them and the four of them headed back towards the Three Broomsticks for some butterbeer.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
As they entered the Three Broomsticks, Hermione's ring began to glow once again and they saw that Parvati was still there but now her twin sister Padma was with her. However they could see that Padma's face had worry written all over it as she talked quietly with her sister.  
  
Now that Cho was aware that Parvati was a vampire, she suggested that they sit where they could keep an eye on her.  
  
Ron and Hermione agreed so they took a seat at a table overlooking both Parvati's table and the door.  
  
Madam Rosmerta came over to take their order. "Back already? - Well what can I get you?"  
  
"I'll have a butterbeer," Harry said, "What about you Cho?"  
  
"I'll have the same thing," she said to Harry.  
  
"Make that three," Ron added.  
  
"Four," said Hermione.  
  
Madam Rosmerta smiled at them. "Four butterbeers it is. I'll be back here with your order in a bit but until then, enjoy your stay."  
  
The door to the Three Broomsticks and a very bashful Dean and Seamus entered the pub carrying a box of chocolate behind their back.  
  
They walked over to where Parvati and Padma were and asked if they could sit down. Padma nodded her head and the two boys took out the box of chocolate and offered it to them, asking if they would go to the Valentine's ball with them.  
  
Both girls looked at each other for a moment before giving Dean and Seamus a reply. Apparently it was a 'yes' since the two boys broke into smiles of relief immediately afterwards and the four of them began to talk amongst themselves.  
  
Madam Rosmerta soon came with their drinks and Harry paid the bill in advance.  
  
"Looks like we'll have to be alert during the dance," Hermione said.  
  
"Oh great," Ron said disappointedly, "We won't get to enjoy the dance now."  
  
"Be quiet Ron," Hermione chastised, "You'll still get to enjoy the ball but if Parvati leaves, we need to follow."  
  
"But what if she leaves in the beginning?" Ron whined.  
  
Hermione glared at Ron. "Which is more important? The life of your dorm mate or your ability to have fun at the ball? If Parvati keeps biting people, there won't be anymore students at the school and then there's no way you'll be able to have fun. Got it?"  
  
Ron sighed. "I never win an argument against you, do I?"  
  
"You haven't yet Ron and I don't think you will," Harry teased, trying to lighten up the mood.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Once they had finished their butterbeers, it was time to go and the students headed back towards the waiting carriages that would take them back to Hogwarts.  
  
The skeletons once again opened the doors and this time Harry and Cho were able to sit in the same carriage as Ron and Hermione.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they arrived at the school, Harry excused himself and walked with Cho back to the Ravenclaw tower.  
  
"I enjoyed spending the day with you Harry," Cho said once they arrived at the portrait leading to the Ravenclaw common room. "I hope that we can do this again but I'll see you at dinner."  
  
Harry grinned. "I enjoyed the day too Cho. Take care and I'll see you later."  
  
Cho smiled at him and gave him a hug before saying the password and entering the portrait.  
  
Harry stared at Cho's figure until the portrait closed again and made his way towards the empty classroom where his practices were always held with the Water Guardian.  
  
However Harry was curious to see what the water guardian looked like in human form and made a little detour outside to collect some dirt for the Earth Guardian.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Once he got into the empty classroom, Harry first placed the dirt on the ground and summoned the Earth Guardian.  
  
The dirt multiplied and gathered from the ground up to form the humanoid figure of the Earth Guardian. Then Harry lit a fire in the fireplace that was on the far end of the classroom so that he could summon the Fire Guardian.  
  
The fire roared and Harry jumped back to avoid getting burned by it.  
  
A head soon appeared from the fire and it spread to form a neck and torso. Two arms formed from there and eventually the whole form of the Fire Guardian crawled out of the fireplace and stood in front of Harry.  
  
Once that was done, Harry summoned the Air Guardian in another corner of the classroom. The air in the classroom swirled around the room blowing out the fire in the fireplace, but leaving the Fire Guardian relatively unharmed, and formed a nearly invisible figure made completely out of air in front of Harry.  
  
Finally, Harry transfigured a desk into a cup and created some water in it so that he could summon the Water Guardian.  
  
Pointing his wand at the cup, Harry said the spell to summon the last of the four guardians.  
  
The water level in the cup rose and eventually spilled into the floor but then the water particles congregated and rose up like a fountain to form the figure of the Water Guardian.  
  
The four guardians then gathered and stood in a line facing Harry.  
  
*Your bidding? * they asked in unison.  
  
Harry pointed his wand at the Water Guardian as she had told him previously and said, "Dominatus Water!"  
  
The figures of the four guardians faded and glided sideways through the air, eventually combining in the space occupied by the Water Guardian. The figure then solidified once again only this time it took on the appearance of a human female, a foot taller than Harry with flowing chestnut coloured hair that fell down past her shoulders. She was clothed in a light blue dress that came down to her ankles with light blue arm length gloves and a pair of elegant light blue heeled shoes.  
  
"Hullo Harry," the woman greeted him. "I'm glad to see that you pulled it off."  
  
Harry grinned at her. "I was curious to see what you looked like as a human, though you are taller than me."  
  
"Would you prefer that I adjust my height to match yours?"  
  
"You can do that?"  
  
"Sure," the woman said and she reduced her height until she was about the same height as Harry.  
  
"Do you have a name?"  
  
"I don't have a given name; my masters call me whatever they like but my previous one called me Ruby."  
  
"So.," said Ruby, "are you ready for your dance lessons?"  
  
"Yes," Harry replied. "However I still haven't found a date for you yet."  
  
Ruby's face fell. "Well, you still have three weeks to do that so I guess I'll let it pass. Let's get started shall we?"  
  
For the next few hours, Ruby continued Harry's dancing lessons. This time he didn't step on her toes and she even let him lead her until he messed up. Having a Guardian as his mentor had its advantages for unlike the teachers at Hogwarts, Ruby was quite patient and didn't yell at him for making mistakes. Instead she would guide him slowly through the steps until he got it right again.  
  
By the time dinner rolled around, Harry was quite hungry and he requested that they stop for the day.  
  
"Aw, how about we go through the steps one more time?" Ruby pleaded.  
  
"Oh all right," Harry conceded. "I don't think the others will mind if I'm a bit late for dinner."  
  
They danced once again though this time Ruby sang a slow tune for them to dance to. Harry found himself very much entranced by the sound of Ruby's voice and soon lost himself in the sound of it.  
  
In fact, Harry was so taken in by Ruby's voice that he didn't notice that the door to the classroom open and a figure carrying a sword and wearing a long black cape entered. Seeing the two of them dancing alone in the middle of the empty classroom, the figure took a seat in one of the empty desks and watched them intently.  
  
After about four minutes, the song ended and Harry brought himself back to reality only to find a lone figure sitting in a chair applauding him.  
  
"Excellent performance," the Count said. "A bit awkward with the lady leading but otherwise excellent. My apologies for intruding but I was patrolling the halls and I heard someone singing in here."  
  
Harry looked at Sepet rather strangely since he was expecting him to draw his sword at anytime rather than comment on his dancing ability or Ruby's singing.  
  
"However," Sepet continued. "You are late for dinner and I expect that your friends will be waiting for you."  
  
"Yes Professor," Harry said. "I'll be on my way."  
  
"One question though Mr. Potter."  
  
"What's that?"  
  
"Who is this lovely lady present by your side?" the Count asked looking at Ruby. "I don't believe I've seen her here before."  
  
"That's because I don't go to this school," Ruby answered before Harry could do so. "My name is Ruby. Who might you be sir?"  
  
Sepet got up out of his seat and walked towards Ruby. "I am Count Vladimir Sepet, the duelling teacher at this school. I certainly hope that you aren't some student that has been sneaking out of another school because you would be in very deep trouble if your headmaster found out."  
  
Ruby's figure grew until she was only a head shorter than the Count, prepared to defend herself and Harry in case Sepet decided to start some trouble.  
  
"You aren't a normal human either," Sepet commented, noticing Ruby's change in height as he approached with one hand on the hilt of his sword.  
  
"Of course not, I'm Harry's guardian."  
  
Then Sepet did something that Harry hadn't seen before, he smiled. Not an evil smile like he'd been seeing either but a genuine one.  
  
"That changes everything. It is a pleasure to meet you, Ruby. I haven't seen one of your kind in years and I didn't think I would encounter one again," Sepet said with a slight bow.  
  
"Really now..When did you last encounter one?"  
  
"Years ago when I was still training to hunt down vampires, I had the fortune to meet one during a visit to London," Sepet said, finally pausing a foot away from them. "She was quite lovely too, just like yourself."  
  
Ruby blushed slightly at the compliment and Harry became quite suspicious. If the Count was trying to throw Ruby off, Harry wouldn't know since he didn't have his ring.  
  
"Mr. Potter," Sepet said suddenly. "Normally I do not request favours from students but I will make an exception here."  
  
"What would that be?"  
  
"I would like your permission to escort this lovely lady to the upcoming Valentine's ball. I haven't found anyone to bring yet but I think my search will have come to an end."  
  
Harry thought about it for a moment. On one hand, he was quite surprised by Sepet's request but on the other, this would provide him with a better opportunity to keep an eye on Sepet during the ball. If he was with Ruby the entire time, Sepet would be less likely to bite people and Harry's task would only be limited to watching Parvati.  
  
Glancing at Ruby, Harry saw that she was giving him an anxious look. "You can go with her Professor."  
  
"Thank you Harry," Ruby squealed in delight. "You've made me very happy by keeping your part of the bargain."  
  
"Thank you Mr. Potter," the Count said, making his way back towards the door. "I will look forward to the ball but for now, you may want to head to the Great Hall for dinner before it ends. Good night."  
  
With that the Count made his exit and Ruby gave Harry a hug. "Thank you again Harry. I'm glad you kept your promise."  
  
Harry grinned. "You're welcome but I think it's time for you to go. I'll see you tomorrow."  
  
Ruby let go of Harry and stood in the centre of the classroom. Harry then pointed his wand at Ruby and said, "Finite incantatem."  
  
Immediately Ruby's figure began to fade and eventually disappeared out of existence. The dirt that Harry had gathered earlier was back in a small pile where he had placed it earlier and the fire in the fireplace was burning once again. The only difference was that the transfigured cup that should have been full of water was completely empty.  
  
Afterwards, Harry tidied up the classroom and headed out the door down to dinner.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A/N: Sorry it took a while. Had to think of what subplots to stick in the chapter and that took quite a few days but thank you all for your reviews. Up next: The Valentine's Ball.  
  
Phoenix of Light: As the story progresses, I'm finding it harder to come up with good things to put in the chapter. There will be a few more missions later and some interesting plot twists that hopefully no one's seen in any other fanfic before.  
  
Rogue1615: Harry will do something about Dumbledore's imprisonment, don't worry about that one.  
  
Temporary Insanity: Thank you for the review. I think you're right about the pairings so I'll keep that up during the story.  
  
CrazyLuv15: As much as I'd like to take credit for the spells, no I didn't make them up, I only came up with the incantations with a few exceptions. Those spells are from games that I've played and I thought they were really good so I put them in the story.  
  
Hermi: Wow, Thank you for the compliment. Don't worry about me not finishing this fic. I will finish it because it's the readers like you that make it worth the effort.  
  
Angelis: Sorry but this chap was a bit slow. I'll try to do better with posting of the next one though I'll have to think about how to write the dance scenes and what to do with the plot before and after the dance.  
  
Kodomo: Harry will find the forbidden magic at some point in his elemental book, I just haven't found a fitting place to put it in. I may even add more spells in the elemental branches for the next fanfic. Unfortunately there isn't a guardian for the forbidden magic but if you want, I can add one. I'd expect it'd have to be very hard to control and very destructive.  
  
Blackdragoneye: Don't worry about not posting every chapter. I don't mind if you give me a review or not, just sometimes people suggest things in their reviews that help the story along. Temporary Insanity also said the same thing about the pairings so I'll keep it that way. I don't know when I'll start writing the next fic, most likely after I come up with a basic storyline to make it easier to come up with the subplots. That way I won't have to rush to come up with how the plot develops each night like I was doing with the first 17 chapters.  
  
Quis: I'm glad you liked that part. More action to come in the later chapters though I'll warn you that the upcoming missions may be extremely bloody, something like what happened during the first mission.  
  
Marba50: Cho isn't addicted to Harry, she just wants to make up for turning him down last year. As for Cedric, she's still somewhat sad about it but doesn't show it. It's there though cuz she mentions that she doesn't want to lose another person she was close to.  
  
ARGHHHHHHHH: I assure you that as much as this may not have an original title, the plot is really good and it has quite a few things that most people probably haven't seen in other fanfics (I hope).  
  
Julie: If you've gotten this far, hopefully Walter's comment about saving Alicia makes more sense. If not, ask me and I'll explain it.  
  
kal_23: I won't stop writing so don't worry about that. The person flaming me happens to be someone from my high school. He's was an asshole in high school and it appears he's become even more of one. However I do applaud him for flaming me because being the only flamer out of 196 reviews only makes people want to read this even more =). In a sense, I should be thanking him for flaming me and getting more readers rather than hurting me. 


	30. Chapter 28: The Valentine's Ball

A/N: If you're interested in downloading the songs that are used during the ball, you can either IM me and I'll transfer them to you or you can just download them yourself from Kazaa. The songs are as follows and are played in the order listed:  
  
"Waltz for the Moon" - Final Fantasy VIII (Sepet & Ruby dancing)  
  
"Perhaps Love" - Richard Clayderman (Ron/Hermione dancing)  
  
"Lady in Red/Take My Breath Away" (instrumental) - Richard Clayderman (Harry/Cho dancing)  
  
"Ano Hi Ni" - Megumi Hayashibara (Ruby's song in this chapter) note: played with the idea that no one but Ruby knows what the words mean.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 28: The Valentine's Ball  
  
January soon passed into February and the professors had a harder time getting the students to pay attention in classes since they were all very excited about the upcoming ball. There hadn't been any word from Sirius and Harry was getting even more worried that something might have happened to him however Hermione continued to reassure him that nothing was wrong.  
  
Viktor Krum started making himself more noticeable around the school again and it made Harry wonder where he had been. Then again, Harry had been hospitalized for a bit ever since his Quidditch accident and was so worried about being attacked by Parvati that he hadn't had the time to bother with him.  
  
One day at dinner, a week before the Valentine's ball, Hedwig came to visit Harry with a note attached to her leg. Harry took the note and gave Hedwig a bit of his dinner as a treat. She then nipped his ear and took off with her meal as Harry opened the note to read it.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Harry,  
  
This is Arabella Figg. Padfoot is observing Avery now so he told me to write you a note saying that everything is going well and that we'll be back soon.  
  
I know that you're worried about Dumbledore but we'll have the information we need to rescue him very soon. Padfoot will talk to you when he gets back but until then, take care.  
  
-Arabella Figg  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Hey Harry, what did the note say?" Ron asked as Harry quickly pocketed it before anyone else noticed it.  
  
"It was about Sirius, he says that he's doing well and that he'll be coming to visit soon," Harry replied, leaving out the fact that the note had something to do with the Phoenix Order and Dumbledore.  
  
Hermione threw him a knowing look and Ron looked as if was going to question him further but fortunately for them, Cho decided to come and visit.  
  
"Hi Harry - Ron - Hermione," Cho greeted them.  
  
"Hi Cho," Harry returned. "How are you doing?"  
  
"I'm doing just fine - I was going to ask you if you wanted to walk with me for a bit afterwards," said Cho.  
  
Harry agreed and got up but when he turned around to go with Cho, he had to jump aside in order to avoid two owls swooping down from the air, crashing headlong into Cho. The force of his action caused them both to fall to the ground with Harry landing on top.  
  
"Harry," Cho murmured underneath him. "Could you please get off me?"  
  
Harry felt himself turn red in embarrassment and he quickly rolled off Cho and got up. Extending a hand to help her up, Harry looked to see what the two owls had delivered only to find that it was a box of chocolates and a small note addressed to Hermione.  
  
"Thanks Harry," Cho said as Harry helped her up.  
  
"You're welcome, sorry about that," Harry said, his cheeks still flushed red from embarrassment.  
  
"Uh, Harry," Hermione interrupted. "Could you and Cho do a favour for me?"  
  
"Sure, what is it?"  
  
"Could you both go to the library and ask what Krum wants?" Hermione said nervously turning the note over and over again in her hands.  
  
"Krum? What does this have to do with him?" Ron asked with narrowed eyes.  
  
"Here, take a look for yourself," Hermione replied handing him the note for them to look at.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Dear Hermione,  
  
The box of chocolates is for you. I'm sorry I haven't been around much since I have been spending my time in the library but if it isn't too much trouble, please come to see me in the library. There is something I would like to ask you.  
  
Yours Truly,  
  
Viktor Krum  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"I wonder what he wants," Ron muttered bitterly.  
  
"Didn't you go with him to the ball last year?" Cho asked looking at the note over Ron's shoulder.  
  
"Yeah and I have a feeling that this has something to do with the Valentine's ball," Hermione said, pressing her lips together in a frown.  
  
"Why don't you want to go with him? He seemed pretty nice last year from what I heard."  
  
"Long story.." Hermione said gloomily.  
  
"Don't worry Hermione, I'll take care of it," Harry said and he whispered quickly into Cho's ear, "I'll explain later."  
  
"Thank you Harry," Hermione said, smiling at him.  
  
"Ready to go?" Cho asked turning to leave.  
  
"Okay, let's go," Harry agreed. "Bye Hermione, bye Ron. I'll see you two later."  
  
With that, Harry and Cho left the Great Hall and headed over to the library.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"So why doesn't your friend Hermione want to go with Viktor Krum?" Cho asked as they walked down the now quiet halls of the school towards the library.  
  
"He invited her over to stay in Bulgaria a bit over the summer but during that time, he basically ignored her whenever his friends were around," Harry explained.  
  
"I had no idea he could be so cold," Cho said thoughtfully. "He struck me as a rather nice and caring person but I guess looks can be deceiving."  
  
"If Krum asks where Hermione is, what should I tell him?"  
  
"You could try making up a story like she's not feeling well or something," Cho suggested.  
  
"That could work but if he's trying to win her back, he'll want to go visit her and Hermione would kill me if that happened."  
  
"What about saying that she's trying to catch up on sleep?"  
  
Harry laughed. "Hermione? Catching up on sleep? Unheard of but it could work."  
  
"It's a good excuse but we'll see how it goes."  
  
They turned a corner and walked down the hallway until they entered the school library. Madam Pince was sitting at the desk reading over a book but Krum was nowhere in sight.  
  
"Where is he?" Harry hissed in annoyance.  
  
"Let's go look for him, he's probably looking around at the books."  
  
So they started searching between the shelves and at each table they saw. However they didn't find Krum until they reached the back of the library where they found him sitting at a table with a bouquet of roses in front of him and intently reading over a book of spells.  
  
"Viktor Krum?" Cho questioned, trying to get his attention.  
  
Krum looked up from his reading and was surprised to see Harry and Cho in front of him instead of Hermione.  
  
"Harry, vhat a surprise to find you here," Krum said. "Vho is she?"  
  
Cho proceeded to introduce herself. "I don't believe we've met before, I'm Cho Chang from Ravenclaw."  
  
"A pleasure," Krum said with a small smile. "Vhat are you two doing here? Vare is Hermy-own-ninny?"  
  
Harry was starting to doubt that using the excuse they had come up beforehand would work and hesitated for a moment but to his relief, Cho quickly covered for him. "She's catching up on some sleep right now so that's why we're here."  
  
"But the note vos supposed to be delivered to her," Krum said, looking at them suspiciously.  
  
"It was," Harry said, finally gathering himself. "We happened to be in the common room and we accidentally read it so we came here to tell you that she was asleep. That way you wouldn't have to wait here all night."  
  
"Can I see her?" Krum asked, getting up.  
  
"She asked not to be disturbed while she was asleep unless it was an emergency," Cho replied.  
  
"But this is an emergency!" Krum exclaimed, jumping up and knocking his chair to the ground in the process.  
  
Harry and Cho looked at Krum with upraised eyebrows. "Why do you say that?"  
  
"Because I need to ask her to the ball!" Krum shouted.  
  
Hearing the commotion in the back of the library, Madam Pince got up from her desk and headed over to see what was causing it. Several students in the library also followed closely behind the librarian to get a better look at what was going on.  
  
"I'm sorry but you're too late," Cho told Krum bluntly. "Someone's already asked her."  
  
"V-" Krum started to say.  
  
" - You three," Madam Pince scolded when she found them. "If you can't keep your voices down I'll throw you out."  
  
"Sorry," Harry apologised, "We'll keep it down."  
  
Madam Pince was apparently satisfied with the answer for she walked back to her desk and continued reading but the students continued to look on.  
  
"Vho asked Hermy-own-ninny to the ball?" Krum asked, keeping his voice down.  
  
"I know," said one of the students. "It was her friend, Ron Weasley."  
  
Krum looked disappointed. "Oh.."  
  
"I'm sorry Viktor that you weren't able to go with the person you wanted to but there are other opportunities to talk with her and if nothing else, there are other girls out there. Maybe you can ask one of them."  
  
"Whose side are you on?" Harry muttered to Cho but not loud enough that Krum would overhear.  
  
"Sorry," she replied softly, giving Harry a sheepish smile, "but Krum has feelings too and it wouldn't be very nice of us if we didn't try to help him."  
  
"I guess you're right," Harry agreed.  
  
"Vell, I guess I vos too slow this time," Viktor said, gathering up the bouquet of roses. "Thank you Harry - it vos nice to meet you Cho."  
  
With that, Viktor quietly left the library and the students around them went back to doing what they were doing previously.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Harry awoke on Valentine's day to find two school owls perched on his window, each with a note on its leg. Hedwig was sitting on her cage staring at the two owls that had invaded her master's room and looked as if she was about to thrash the two foreign owls.  
  
Harry got out of bed and walked over to the window and removed the two notes from their legs before releasing them out the window. Upon closer inspection, he saw that one note was from Sepet and the other was from Cho.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Mr. Potter,  
  
Thank you once again for allowing me to escort Ruby to the ball. I will meet you both at 6:00 PM this evening Walter's classroom since the ball starts at 7 PM; that way there will be enough time to prepare.  
  
Count Sepet  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Harry then put away the note and opened the one from Cho.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Dear Harry,  
  
Happy Valentine's day! I was hoping that I could see you before the ball and that we could do something together with Ron and Hermione until about 3, then I need to get ready for the ball and I'm sure Hermione will too. See you at breakfast.  
  
Love,  
  
Cho  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Harry blushed slightly after reading over the note again. *Love Cho? * Harry thought as some old feelings came flooding back. *Maybe getting over Hermione won't be so hard. *  
  
Harry smiled happily to himself. He had been looking forward to this day since he could finally see whether or not his dancing lessons paid off. However in order to make things easier on himself later, he decided that it would be better if he summoned Ruby first; that way he wouldn't have to rush to get down to Walter's classroom later on.  
  
After changing into his school robes, buckling his sword under his robes, and grabbing his wand and ring, Harry made his way downstairs and exited the portrait, heading in the direction of the empty classroom where his dancing lessons were always held.  
  
However, Harry made sure to quickly go outside to gather some dirt in his hands before continuing on towards the classroom.  
  
Upon arriving at the classroom, Harry locked the door to ensure that he wouldn't be disturbed and proceeded to summon each of the guardians.  
  
Once that was finished, he pointed his wand at the Water Guardian and said the spell to combine all of them into her human form. Immediately the forms of the four guardians faded and glided towards the centre of the room before solidifying once again into a girl about the same height as Harry with chestnut coloured hair, only this time it was braided with a light blue ribbon tied into a neat little bow at the end of it and a slightly larger bow at the crown of her head. Instead of her usual light blue dress, Ruby was wearing a white blouse with a light blue scarf neatly fastened at her throat with a ruby jewel and a navy blue skirt that stopped just above her knees.  
  
"Harry!" Ruby exclaimed with a bright smile when she saw him. "How are you? I'm soo excited about the ball today."  
  
Harry grinned. "I'm doing just great and I'm looking forward to the ball too."  
  
"What time is it? Do I need to change?"  
  
Harry chuckled slightly. "No, the ball isn't for another 12 hours. It is only 7:00 in the morning but Sepet would like to meet you around 6."  
  
"Why can't I see him now?" Ruby asked impatiently.  
  
"Because he'd be asleep right now," Harry explained. "It's still morning and vampires are only awake at night."  
  
"Wouldn't that make him very dangerous?"  
  
"He has already attacked two students which makes him very dangerous indeed, so at the ball I will need your help to keep an eye on him and make sure that he doesn't go off biting anyone."  
  
"All right - though this will be the first time I've ever gone out with a vampire," Ruby mused, "but until then, do you think you could show me around the school?"  
  
"Uh okay, I'm about to go to breakfast where I'm supposed to meet Cho and you're welcome to join us."  
  
"Thank you," Ruby said, smiling at him with her head tilted slightly and both hands in front of her. In that position, Ruby was decidedly cute but Harry couldn't see himself dating someone that whose sole purpose was to protect him.  
  
"Let's go."  
  
Harry then unlocked the door and headed towards the Great Hall with Ruby following closely behind asking him questions about the school every now and then.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When Harry and Ruby arrived at the Great Hall, Harry saw that it was relatively empty except for a handful of Gryffindors and Slytherins. However to no surprise at all, some of the guys that were already there were gawking at Ruby who was looking around at the students with interest.  
  
As he made his way to the Gryffindor table, Harry scanned the Ravenclaw table for Cho but she wasn't there yet so he took a seat at the table where he could see when Cho entered the Great Hall.  
  
"Why are all these boys staring at me? Do I look that strange or is something wrong with what I'm wearing?" Ruby asked, sitting down next to him.  
  
"What you're wearing is fine but they're staring at you like that because they think you're pretty," Harry answered.  
  
Ruby giggled slightly. "I've never seen so many people look at me like that at once in my life."  
  
"That's because you've never been in a school full of hormonal teenage boys before," Harry said dryly. "You also stand out since you aren't wearing a school uniform."  
  
"Should I change into something else?"  
  
"That would only draw attention to yourself so don't change into something different while you're here. You can change later but be sure not to let anyone see you, otherwise they'll suspect something."  
  
Ruby began to idly play around with hair, brushing the lose strands of hair at the bottom of the braid back and forth across her nose, ignoring the stares coming from the guys at the table. "So where are we now?"  
  
"We're in the Great Hall where all our meals take place. The teacher's table is that high table in the far end of the hall and the four tables in front of you are for the four houses."  
  
"Which table are we at?"  
  
"We're sitting at the Gryffindor table and the other tables, from the nearest to the farthest, are Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin."  
  
At that moment, Ron and Hermione entered the Great Hall and headed over to join Harry but they were shocked to find another girl that neither of them had seen before sitting next to him.  
  
"Good Morning Harry," Hermione said, sitting down on the opposite end of the table with Ron next to her.  
  
"Morning Harry," Ron said but he was more distracted by Ruby's looks.  
  
"Hi, I'm Ron Weasley," said Ron, extending a hand to Ruby. "Who are you? I haven't seen you here before."  
  
"I'm Ruby," Ruby said, shaking his hand daintily, "and I would be one of Harry's friends who happens to be visiting for today."  
  
"Really? Harry, why haven't you told us about Ruby before?" Ron asked.  
  
"You never asked," Harry said dryly, causing Hermione and Ruby to laugh at the dumbfounded expression that fell upon Ron's face.  
  
Shaking off his dumbfounded look, Ron made another attempt to talk to Ruby. "I'm a prefect at this school so if you'd like to look around, I'd be more than happy to show you around."  
  
Ruby giggled at Ron's behaviour and Hermione scowled. "Harry has already shown me around the school but thank you anyway."  
  
Ruby then turned to look at Hermione and smiled. "Hullo Hermione, it's nice to see you."  
  
Hermione was taken aback by what Ruby said. "How do you know my name?"  
  
"I've seen you around before and Harry told me that one of his best friends is a girl named Hermione. Since he's Ron," Ruby said, motioning towards Ron. "That makes you Hermione."  
  
Hermione gave Harry a rather confused look but that look soon became one of understanding as she realised that Ruby was the Water Guardian.  
  
Cho entered the Great Hall and Harry waved to her to get her to sit with them. She spotted him and immediately headed over to where he was sitting.  
  
"Hi Harry, mind if I - " Cho said happily but then her eyes fell upon Ruby. " - Oh, we have a visitor today. I'm Cho Chang, who are you?"  
  
"I'm Ruby, it's a pleasure to finally meet you," Ruby said with a smile. "Harry has told me so much about you and I can see that he wasn't exaggerating. You are as pretty and as nice as he says you are."  
  
Both Harry and Cho blushed.  
  
"Really now.. So you're one of his friends then?" Cho asked.  
  
"That's right. I've been helping Harry - " Ruby started to say but was stopped when Harry quickly put a hand of her mouth.  
  
"What has she been helping you with Harry?" Cho asked, eyeing Ruby suspiciously as she sat down on the other side of Harry.  
  
Harry grinned nervously at her. "Nothing... it's a surprise for you but you'll find out later."  
  
Cho became very delighted by what Harry had said. "All right, I'll look forward to it."  
  
Eventually the rest of the students entered the Great Hall for breakfast in large groups. Breakfast continued on relatively peacefully as Harry was enjoying the time he was spending with his friends. However this was disrupted when Malfoy decided to interrupt their meal with his troublesome behaviour.  
  
"If it isn't Potter, Mudblood, Weasel, and Chang," Malfoy said bitterly as he came up behind Ron and Hermione on the other side of the table but then his eyes settled upon Ruby who was looking at him curiously. "Well, well.who do we have here?"  
  
Ruby introduced herself quickly. "I'm Ruby, who are you?"  
  
Malfoy gave her a small smile, "I'm Draco Malfoy, one of the better students at this school and a prefect unlike Potter and his group."  
  
"That's not true," Cho said defiantly. "You know very well that Ron, Hermione and I are prefects Malfoy so don't start with that."  
  
"I take it you don't like them very much," Ruby said nonchalantly, looking at Malfoy from where she was sitting.  
  
"That's because he's a pathetic half-breed who gets off easy on everything just because the teachers favour him for surviving the killing curse and defeating the Dark Lord."  
  
"Go away Malfoy before I get Professor Moody to turn you into a ferret again," Hermione stated with a mischievous grin. "I'm sure you remember him from our duelling class."  
  
"Yeah right Mudblood," Malfoy countered, glancing around to see if any teachers were present. "That sorry excuse for an auror isn't around so your empty threats don't scare me."  
  
Malfoy then turned to look at Ruby. "Why are you around Potter anyway, it's not like you're his date to the ball because he's already going with Chang. Say - rather than stay here with these losers, why don't you join me at the Slytherin table? I don't think we would mind having an extra student sitting with us or better yet, if you don't have a date to the ball, I'll get rid of my date and you can come with me."  
  
"That's enough Malfoy," Harry said, gritting his teeth. "Go back where to belong before you end up in the hospital wing."  
  
"Why should I Potter? Because I'm supposed to be scared of you? Listen, the only reason you've won your duels is because you hide behind Mudblood or Chang but face it, when I drew my sword on you last time, if it weren't for that Necromancer interfering, you would have lost."  
  
Ruby started to laugh, catching the attention of everyone around her. "No need to waste your time Harry, I'll deal with him."  
  
Ruby then stood up and gave Malfoy a flirtatious look. "So how about it Draco? Face me in a duel and if you win, I'll go with you to the ball but if you lose you don't come within ten feet of Harry or any of his friends for the rest of the day ok?"  
  
Malfoy considered it for a moment and grinned. "You're on."  
  
Malfoy then strode to the centre of the Great Hall and Harry leaned towards Ruby. "Aren't you going with Sepet this evening?"  
  
Ruby gave him a sly smile. "That's why I have nothing to lose. If I win, Malfoy won't bother you and if I lose, Malfoy doesn't know I'm going with Sepet and I don't think he would let a git like Malfoy take me to the ball."  
  
With that, Ruby walked to the centre of the Great Hall to face Malfoy and the students in the hall looked on with keen interest.  
  
"How about we make it interesting?" Ruby called. "I'll let you get two other students to help you if you want."  
  
"Nah," Malfoy replied, taking out his wand. "I'll beat you without help that way you can't complain later."  
  
"Suit yourself," Ruby said smugly. "But don't whine after I beat you."  
  
"Common, hurry up and draw your wand already," Malfoy said impatiently. "I don't have all day."  
  
Ruby smiled mischievously. "Who says I needed a wand?"  
  
"What!?" Malfoy exclaimed. "You're a witch aren't you so don't you need a wand? How do I know if I've won then?"  
  
"I'll let you borrow my wand Miss," a Hufflepuff boy who turned out to be Ernie McMillan called.  
  
"Thank you," Ruby said, taking the wand from Ernie who was turning redder by the second.  
  
Ruby then placed the wand in her hair, much to everyone's surprise, and curtsied gracefully facing Malfoy.  
  
"Knock the wand out of my hair and I'm yours," Ruby announced.  
  
Malfoy smirked at her. "This'll be easier than I thought."  
  
"Begin!"  
  
Malfoy went first and fired the disarming spell at Ruby but right before it hit, the air in front of her swirled and formed in a thin shield which deflected the spell back at Malfoy who had to dive out of the way in order to avoid it.  
  
Ruby then raised her hands in front of her and closed her eyes. Immediately a red glow was seen just above her hands and a red orb formed which she shot in Malfoy's direction.  
  
Malfoy saw the glowing orb coming towards him and dodged out of the way but Ruby seemed to be controlling it because it followed Malfoy as he ran around the tables in an attempt to avoid it. However it was futile for the orb hit Malfoy in the back just as he was about to collide into Ruby, paralysing him completely.  
  
"I win," Ruby said simply and she bent down to retrieve Malfoy's wand from his hand. Then she stood up and snapped her fingers, releasing him from the paralysis.  
  
She threw the wand to Malfoy who caught it and retreated quickly out of the Great Hall, shoving some of the students to the ground along the way. Ruby then walked to Ernie, who was staring at her with widened eyes, and handed him his wand. "Thank you for lending me your wand."  
  
"What's going on in here?" A voice yelled above the murmur of voices coming from rabble of students surrounding Ruby.  
  
The students scattered as Walter's figure entered the circle of students but upon seeing Ruby in the centre, Walter's facial expression broke into a wide smile.  
  
"Ah, Miss Ruby," Walter said with a slight bow. "A pleasure to finally meet you. Professor Sepet is looking forward to seeing you this evening."  
  
"How do you know who I am and who are you?" Ruby asked, looking at Walter and ignoring the curious stares she was receiving from the students.  
  
"I am Lord Sepet's personal bodyguard, Walter Laikov. My lord has told me about you and I am pleased to see that you will be accompanying him to the ball this evening. Forgive me for saying so but you do stand out in this crowd of students since you aren't wearing a school uniform so I deduced that you would probably be the woman who my lord was talking about. However you do seem to be a lot shorter than I expected."  
  
Ruby grinned at him. "Don't worry, I get that a lot when I look like this."  
  
"Walter almost makes it sound as if Ruby is going with Sepet to the ball," Hermione said to Harry as they watched Ruby from the Gryffindor table.  
  
Harry nodded. "She is but don't worry, she'll help us keep an eye on him. Then all we need to do is watch what Parvati is doing."  
  
For the rest of the day, Harry, Cho, Ron and Hermione gave Ruby a tour of the castle, pointing out the different rooms and which areas were out of bounds to students. They even got in a game of exploding snap which Cho ended up winning.  
  
Around four, Cho and Hermione excused themselves and headed back to their dorms to prepare for the ball but Ruby stayed with Ron and Harry for a bit. They agreed to meet outside the Gryffindor portrait afterwards.  
  
"Aren't you going to change like the rest of the girls?" Ron asked.  
  
Ruby just smiled at him. "I don't need too long to change."  
  
"So what school are you from and how do you know Harry?"  
  
Ruby started brushing her hair across her nose again. "Huh? I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention."  
  
Ron repeated the question again and Ruby looked a bit stuck but Harry quickly filled in an excuse. "She was one of the visitors at Sepet's castle over the summer."  
  
"So you're a vampire too?"  
  
Ruby laughed. "No, I'm not a vampire - I'm just here to go with him to the ball."  
  
"Why would you want to go with Sepet? He seems pretty heartless to me and aren't you a bit young to be going with someone his age?"  
  
"I'm going because he asked me to the ball and I'm a lot older than I look."  
  
"So how come you look like you're our age?"  
  
Ron was starting to ask too many questions so Harry quickly interrupted before Ruby could respond and suggested that they change into their dress robes before the ball.  
  
"But we still have another hour or so," Ron protested. "It's not like Hermione and Cho will be done anytime soon."  
  
"I need to take Ruby to meet Sepet at six and I need to be changed by then or I'll be late," Harry said.  
  
"Want me to come with you?" Ruby asked as Harry headed upstairs causing him to nearly trip on the stairs.  
  
"No thanks, you need to change too. You can go up to Hermione's dorm, it's down that way." Harry said, pointing at the staircase leading to the girls' dormitory.  
  
Ruby then got up and walked up the stairs that Harry had pointed out. Once she was out of sight, Harry continued up the stairs to his dorm so that he could change.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Around 5:45, Harry and Ruby exited the portrait to head down to Walter's classroom where they would be meeting Sepet. Ruby was wearing a white, sleeveless gown that fell to just above her ankles with a large light blue bow at the small of her back and white, arm-length gloves. On her feet were a pair of white slippers and she had a pearl necklace around her neck but her hair was relatively unchanged from before.  
  
"Walter seems like a very nice person," Ruby commented as they walked down the stairs to the first floor. "I wonder how long he's been guarding Sepet."  
  
Harry glanced at Ruby and noticed that she seemed to be getting noticeably taller along the way. "I'm not sure but you can always ask Sepet when you see him."  
  
"I chose something that would match with pretty much anything but I'm not sure if he'll like it."  
  
"I doubt he's picky about what you're wearing - I mean he did ask you to come with him so I don't think he'll have a problem with that."  
  
By the time they arrived at Walter's classroom, Harry found that Sepet was already waiting there. However Sepet was dressed a lot differently than he normally was. Instead he was dressed in an old fashioned blue, gold, and white European military uniform with knee high military boots and white gloves to go with it. In addition, he was wearing a slightly shorter black cape over both shoulders fastened his ruby encrusted clasp and his broadsword was fastened around his waist with a black belt.  
  
"Good evening my dear," Sepet said, kissing the back of Ruby's hand. "Thank you for coming and thank you Mr. Potter for bringing her here."  
  
"You're welcome," Harry said with a smile. "I hope that you both have a good time at the ball."  
  
"Don't worry," Ruby said. "I will but you need to go - you don't want to keep Cho waiting now."  
  
Harry then said goodbye to Ruby and Sepet and ran out the door up to the Gryffindor tower where Ron, Hermione and Cho had agreed to meet earlier.  
  
Harry arrived outside the Gryffindor portrait a bit early but he also noted that Ron had finished changing and was already waiting for the girls.  
  
"How do I look Harry?" Ron asked him anxiously as Harry arrived.  
  
Harry looked over Ron a bit and seeing nothing wrong, gave him a nod of approval. "You look find to me, nothing seems wrong."  
  
"I wonder how Hermione looks." Ron said quietly.  
  
"I'm sure she'll look fine," Harry assured him. "She's a perfectionist so she'll make sure that everything is perfect before coming out."  
  
Ron laughed weakly. "Easy for you to say, you're not the one going with her."  
  
Harry frowned at Ron. "You were the one who asked her to the ball, I hope you're not having second thoughts about it or I'll have to thrash you even if you're my best friend."  
  
"Harry!" Cho's voice called and upon turning around, Harry's jaw dropped at the sight before him.  
  
Cho was walking towards him with a bright smile which was emphasized even more by what she was wearing. Her dress robe was made entirely of red velvet with gold lining along the edges and her hair was left to flow freely behind her, making her look extremely beautiful.  
  
Cho spun around once to reveal additional patterns on the back embroidered in gold. "How do I look?"  
  
It took a while for Harry to recover from the shock but eventually replied, "You definitely look nice."  
  
Cho's cheeks flushed red. "Thank you, you look good as well and I think our robes match nicely. Gold and red, the Gryffindor colours."  
  
The portrait opened and Hermione finally appeared. "Hi guys, how do I look?"  
  
"You look great Hermione," Cho said, moving to stand next to Harry and closed his mouth with the tip of her finger.  
  
Hermione had done her hair so that it was straight and shiny like last year but this time it was worn down instead of up in a knot. Her dress robes were also blue like last year but with gold patterns along the sides, somewhat similar to Cho's.  
  
"Shall we go?" Hermione asked. "We don't want to be late for the ball."  
  
"Uh, sure," Ron replied, finally snapping out of the trance he was in.  
  
"Lead the way Ron," Harry said, offering his arm to Cho which she took happily.  
  
Ron was trying hard not to sweat out of pure nervousness but he eventually gathered himself and took Hermione's hand in his before leading the way to the Great Hall.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Harry was in a state of awe when he arrived at the Great Hall for there were red and pink decorations everywhere in the shape of hearts and cupids. The four tables that were normally present were now lined up along the sides and were replaced with several small round tables which seated about 7-8 people each around the Great Hall.  
  
The area which usually had the teacher's table was now cleared as a stage and there was a large 200 piece orchestra made up entirely of skeletons in the far right corner of the Hall.  
  
"Let's go get a seat before all the tables are taken," Cho suggested.  
  
They looked around for a table near the dancing floor and eventually settled on one near one of the tables that was occupied by most of the professors. The Weasleys were occupying one table close by with Katie Bell and Alicia Spinnet sitting next to Fred and George. Hagrid was sitting at the Professor's table drinking and laughing merrily Professor Vector and even Professor Trelawney was there, talking to a very peeved Professor Snape who looked almost as if he was ready to strangle her. However upon listening in to what Trelawney was saying though, Harry couldn't help but feel sorry for Snape even though he loathed being around him.  
  
"But Severus, the tea leaves say that we're meant to be together," Trelawney was saying. "I've foreseen that we will be very happy, believe me."  
  
Snape turned his head slowly to glare at Trelawney. "Sibyll, if you can't keep your blasted predictions to yourself, I will make sure that you will never make another prediction again."  
  
"I don't know why I bothered coming with you in the first place," Snape muttered to himself.  
  
"Poor Snape," Harry said, looking back at Cho. "I almost feel sorry for him since he's here with Trelawney though after suffering through his class, I can't say he doesn't deserve it."  
  
"I'd say you're right but I think that Professor Trelawney would be hurt," Cho said, glancing in the direction of the teacher's table to see what was going on.  
  
"Even better," Ron commented. "It'd be nice if our two least favourite teachers wiped each other out."  
  
"Careful what you wish for Ron," Hermione said. "We may end up wish someone worse, like Lockhart."  
  
"I thought you liked that guy," Ron said with disdain.  
  
"That was until I realised he was a fraud."  
  
"Funny how it took you longer than us to figure that out," Ron said sarcastically.  
  
Hermione quickly turned to face Ron. "Well if it weren't for me, you wouldn't have figured out that there was a basilisk in the school," she said hotly.  
  
"Uh guys," Harry interrupted. "Can we not fight today? I'm sure you'd like to enjoy the ball as much as I do."  
  
"Harry's right, sorry Hermione," Ron apologized.  
  
Sepet and Ruby eventually arrived and there were many gasps of surprise coming from some of the students since they were wondering why she looked different. Walter came almost immediately after them and Harry was quite surprised to find that he wasn't dressed in his normal combat attire and that he had arrived with Professor McGonagall.  
  
Walter was dressed almost like Sepet however his uniform was silver and he had a forest green cape that fell over his left shoulder to match with McGonagall's emerald green dress robes.  
  
Ruby motion towards Harry's table and all four of them came to fill up the remaining seats at his table.  
  
"Good evening Harry," Professor McGonagall said with a small smile. "I'm glad to see that you have come with Miss Chang and I hope you all enjoy yourselves at the ball. The menus are in front of you so order what you wish."  
  
"This place is really pretty," Ruby said delightfully as she looked around at all of the decorations around the Great Hall. "The house elves did a very good job with the decorations."  
  
"Actually Walter did," McGonagall corrected. "He did such a wonderful job with making sure that this place was perfect for this evening."  
  
Walter smiled at her. "I think you're giving me more credit than I deserve my dear."  
  
"I guess we should start eating before the dancing starts, otherwise we'll miss out," Cho suggested, pulling out the menu.  
  
Harry followed suit and glanced over the menu. There didn't seem like anything that he liked so he settled on a steak and some roast potatoes. Ron followed suit and ordered the same thing as Harry but Hermione and Cho ordered small portions of roast chicken and some soup.  
  
During dinner, the orchestra played some gentle background music which added a rather pleasant atmosphere to the Hall however Harry constantly scanned each of the tables for Parvati and Seamus. Since his ring was already glowing, Harry didn't have a clue as to where Parvati could be since it didn't indicate how close the danger was or where it was coming from. Malfoy was sulking next to a very furious looking Pansy in one corner, apparently because she heard that Malfoy had wanted to dump her and take Ruby to the ball but still neither Parvati nor Seamus were anywhere in sight.  
  
"Looking for Parvati?" Cho asked, noticing that Harry was looking around quite a bit.  
  
"Yeah," Harry replied. "I'm worried that she'll attack Seamus."  
  
"She'll appear soon enough since this was all that she's been discussing with Lavender lately," Hermione stated.  
  
Sepet cast a thoughtful glance in Harry's direction as if he knew what they were discussing but Ruby got his attention by asking him to dance.  
  
"Since we're not going to eat anything anytime soon, why don't we go dance?"  
  
Sepet agreed and offered his hand to her which she took happily. The two of them then went towards the dance floor in the centre of the Great Hall and began to dance to a lively waltz tune that the orchestra had begun playing.  
  
Being the only two people on the dance floor made Sepet and Ruby stand out and many of the students were observing the two of them as they moved gracefully along the floor, almost as if they were walking on air.  
  
"They dance very well," Cho commented. "Almost as if they were made for each other on the dance floor."  
  
"Yeah," Harry agreed. "I know Ruby is a very good dancer but I'd say Sepet is her equal."  
  
Some of the students, seeing the lone pair on the dance floor gathered up some courage and started to dance as well.  
  
Ron finished the last of his dinner and stood up, offering his hand to Hermione as Sepet had done with Ruby. "May I have this dance Hermione?"  
  
Hermione smiled and took Ron's hand. "Of course."  
  
As Hermione and Ron headed to the dance floor, the first song finished and the second one, 'Perhaps Love,' began. Harry felt his insides fall away as he watched them go and begin to dance a bit awkwardly since Ron didn't seem to have any idea what to do at all. In fact Harry thought that he must have been just as bad, if not worse, before Ruby had taught him how do dance.  
  
"So how did you get to know Ruby?" Cho asked, observing her from their table.  
  
"I met her over the summer," Harry said carefully. "In Diagon alley while I was trying to meet with Sirius."  
  
"She looks a lot taller than this morning. I wonder if it's her slippers or if she's using magic to make herself look that way."  
  
"A bit of both I'd say."  
  
Walter eventually got up and asked McGonagall to dance. She accepted and both of them joined the people on the dance floor leaving Cho and Harry alone at the table but as both of them moved out of the line of Harry's vision, he finally spotted Parvati with Seamus, Dean and Padma dancing in the far end of the Great Hall.  
  
"Parvati is here," Harry said, pointing her out to Cho. "We should make sure that she doesn't go around biting anyone."  
  
"Good idea but how do you propose we do that?"  
  
Harry stood up and offered his hand to Cho just as Ron had done with Hermione. "May I have this dance my dear Cho?"  
  
Cho threw him a smile and took his hand. "Yes you may."  
  
Harry led her on to the dance floor about midway through the second song and they began to dance. However Harry became suddenly self-conscious of how close in proximity he was to Cho and felt himself go stiff out of pure nervousness.  
  
"Relax, I'm not going to hurt you, much," Cho teased him.  
  
Harry smiled and made an attempt to relax, concentrating more on his dancing steps rather than on the fact that he was so close to Cho. Unfortunately that didn't work too well as he started tripping over his feet.  
  
"There's no need to be so nervous around me," Cho said, noting that he hadn't relaxed much. "But I find it cute that you're trying your best."  
  
Harry felt his cheeks heat up as he looked into Cho's eyes, taking in every detail from how the light made them sparkle to the way those dark brown orbs seemed to reflect her feelings. Only in that moment did Harry truly relax and move according to the rhythm of the song as Ruby had taught him.  
  
"You dance very well," Cho whispered to him after a while. "I'm glad that I got the chance to go to the ball with you this year."  
  
"So am I," Harry said softly. "This was the surprise that I had for you earlier. Ruby taught me to dance so that I wouldn't make a fool of myself on the dance floor but I think I didn't do as good of a job as I thought," Harry said with a grin.  
  
"I disagree - you're doing an excellent job of dancing, just you need to learn to relax."  
  
The song continued on and Harry saw Hermione and Ron coming towards him on the dance floor, noticing that both of them looked extremely happy about something.  
  
"Harry - Cho," Hermione said full of excitement. "Can you believe what Ron just did?"  
  
Harry turned to look at Ron who was turning redder by the moment. "What did you do?"  
  
"He asked me to be his girlfriend!" Hermione squealed.  
  
"And I accepted," she said more calmly.  
  
"Congratulations Hermione," Cho said, continuing to dance with Harry in the same spot.  
  
Harry felt himself go numb as the news hit him because that was the one thing that killed all of his chances with Hermione yet part of him wasn't entirely disappointed as he figured something like this would happen eventually.  
  
"Congratulations both of you," Harry said, smiling at both of them. "I'm happy for you."  
  
Hermione gave Harry a thoughtful look but returned his smile in good turn.  
  
"Shall we go back to dancing?" Ron asked Hermione.  
  
"Sure - I'll see you both later," Hermione called as she disappeared back into the crowd of students and professors.  
  
"They'd make such a good couple, don't you think?" Cho asked Harry as they watched them go.  
  
"I dunno, they sure seem to fight a lot," Harry pointed out.  
  
"They probably like each other, just they don't know how to express their feelings for each other."  
  
"So does that mean if I argued with you a lot, I have a crush on you?" Harry asked playfully.  
  
Cho laughed. "You're funny you know that?"  
  
Harry grinned at her and they continued dancing until the song ended however when the next song came up, neither of them could resist blushing.  
  
"Lady in red," Cho said quietly.  
  
Harry chuckled slightly. "Very fitting since you are wearing red."  
  
"Makes me think that this whole thing was rigged."  
  
"I'm not sure," Harry said thoughtfully, "but seeing how playful Walter can be at times, I wouldn't put it past him to try something like this - the orchestra is made up entirely of his skeletons after all."  
  
"I guess but why would he play this song just for us?"  
  
"I wouldn't know - I can't tell what he's thinking most of the time."  
  
Harry glanced quickly in Walter's direction to find that he was still dancing with Professor McGonagall and both of them appeared to be enjoying themselves. Parvati and Seamus were also still dancing but Harry was surprised to find that Parvati was now leaning on Seamus as she danced with him.  
  
"Parvati doesn't seem to want to bite Seamus," Harry said, nodding in their direction.  
  
"Or anyone else for that matter," Cho added. "In fact, she looks very content to be like that."  
  
"That doesn't mean that we should stop watching her. She may bite someone when we least expect it."  
  
Cho nodded in her silent agreement and placed Harry's hand that she was holding on her waist. Then she wrapped both arms around his neck and leaned on his chest.  
  
"Do you mind?" she asked, looking up at him.  
  
As much as Harry felt a tad awkward at having Cho pressed up against him, another part of him that he hadn't entirely gotten rid of was delighted by it.  
  
"No I don't mind," Harry said.  
  
Cho's lips curled up slowly into a smile as she leaned back against Harry's chest and Harry couldn't help but smile at how happy she seemed to be.  
  
The song eventually changed once again and Harry led Cho back to the table where they were before at which Ron and Hermione were already seated.  
  
"You two look good out there," Ron commented. "I didn't think you knew how to dance that well Harry, especially after last year."  
  
Harry grinned. "I've had help from a great teacher."  
  
"Oh? Who would that be?" Hermione cut in.  
  
"Ruby," Harry said, scanning the dance floor before finally settling his eyes upon the two dancing figures of Sepet and Ruby. "She spent each day teaching me how to dance while you guys were off on your rounds."  
  
"No wonder we never noticed you were gone," Ron said with a laugh. "I'd say she did a smashing job - I don't suppose she could teach me?"  
  
"You'll have to take it up with her Ron."  
  
"Maybe she'll improve his sense of rhythm," Hermione said sarcastically. "But do you think she could teach me too? I'm always looking to improve myself and I don't think that my dancing was that great."  
  
"You were fine to me Hermione," Ron said. "A lot better than me."  
  
"Nonsense, you were doing relatively well."  
  
"Why don't we all take dancing lessons?" Cho suggested. "I'm sure we all could use some help from an expert like her."  
  
"I could teach you how to dance," they heard Percy say off to the side. "As part of the ministry, I sometimes attend balls and I'm not half-bad."  
  
"No thanks Perce," Ron replied. "We'll manage."  
  
"So how are you four?"  
  
"We're doing just fine," Hermione said. "How about you?"  
  
"Oh you know, the usual business," Percy said airily, sitting down at the table. "Fudge hasn't been himself lately and I have been entrusted to increasingly important matters."  
  
"Heh, you almost make it sound as if you've become the Minister of Magic," Ron said dryly.  
  
Percy opened his mouth to respond but he was interrupted by Ruby who had just come back with Sepet. "Hi Harry, how was it?"  
  
"He was great Ruby," Cho said with a smile. "You taught him very well and I couldn't ask for a better date than him."  
  
Harry grinned. "Thanks Cho, I'm glad that you're here too."  
  
"Where's Walter?" Ruby asked Sepet.  
  
"He's still dancing with the headmistress, why?"  
  
"Could you bring him here? I have a little surprise for everyone."  
  
Sepet gave Ruby a look of amusement and disappeared into the crowd of people on the dance floor. Ruby then turned to Percy who was staring blankly at her. "Could you please be a dear and get some drinks for us?"  
  
It took a moment for Percy to snap out of his trance but Harry noticed his cheeks turn a tinge of red as he got up. "Uh, sure."  
  
Percy then headed over to the tables where drinks were served and grabbed a tray of pumpkin juice before returning to their table.  
  
"Here you go," Percy announced, handing them out to each person.  
  
"Thank you," Ruby said, taking her drink from Percy just as Sepet returned with Walter and McGonagall.  
  
Percy handed two more drinks to Walter and McGonagall before resuming his seat.  
  
"Miss Ruby, what can I do for you?" Walter said, taking the drink from Percy.  
  
"Would it be too much if I asked if your orchestra could play a particular song?"  
  
"Not at all, in fact if you just tell the lead violinist what song you want, they will play it for you."  
  
"But how would they know what song to play?"  
  
"If you know how the tune goes, they'll be able to play it."  
  
With that Ruby walked over to the orchestra and said something to the skeleton acting as the lead violinist. The skeleton nodded and Ruby then walked to the centre of the stage as the orchestra stopped playing.  
  
"Could I please have everyone's attention?"  
  
Although she didn't have a wand, her voice still echoed through the Great Hall, catching the attention of all the students and professors.  
  
"First of all, I would like to thank Mr. Laikov for putting in time to make this place look wonderful and the headmistress for allowing an event like this to take place."  
  
The Hall broke into cheers and applause and Professor McGonagall and Walter smiled at Ruby who waved at them.  
  
Once the applause died down, Ruby continued on. "Years ago, I attended a ball held by the International Ministry and this song titled 'Ano Hi Ni' was sung by a witch from Japan. I thought it was nice even though I didn't know what the words meant back then and I asked her to teach it to me so now I would like to sing it for you."  
  
Ruby then nodded to the orchestra and the skeletons took up their instruments and began to play.  
  
"We have to dance for this one," Cho told Harry, getting up from her seat and grabbing his hand  
  
"So do we Ron," Hermione said, following suit.  
  
"I don't see why - " Ron started to say but he was cut off when Hermione dragged him to the dance floor by the hand.  
  
Harry and Cho went back on the dance floor while Sepet, Walter and McGonagall occupied their seats and listened to Ruby's singing.  
  
Ruby's voice was beautiful just as Harry had heard before and although he didn't understand what the words meant, he thought the song added an enchanting atmosphere to the Hall.  
  
Harry and Cho found a spot next to Ron who had his arms wrapped around Hermione's waist. Hermione resting her head on Ron's chest facing in Harry's direction. Her eyes were closed yet with the smile on her face, Harry thought she looked very beautiful but it still hurt him to think that she was now Ron's.  
  
Harry turned his attention back to Cho who was looking up at him curiously.  
  
"Is something wrong?"  
  
Harry smiled at her and shook his head before wrapping his arms around her waist as Ron had done with Hermione and started to dance with her.  
  
"I wish tonight wouldn't end," Cho said softly as they rocked back and forth according to the rhythm of the song. "I've enjoyed every moment of it and just being here was probably the happiest moment of my life ever since Cedric died. Thank you Harry."  
  
Harry was quite surprised at what Cho had just told him since he had thought that she had gotten over Cedric's death a long time ago. However something else hit him. Cho did seem truly happy to be here in his arms and it made him think back to the year before to how disappointed he was when she had to turn him down because she was already going with Cedric. She seemed happy then with Cedric and had even cried when he died but now that she was happy again, Harry took into consideration the Phoenix order and their upcoming missions to rescue Dumbledore. These missions would be very dangerous indeed and the possibility of her or anyone else being killed was high. Someone as kind as Cho deserved to be happy and that moment on, Harry decided to take it upon himself to protect her happiness.  
  
"You're welcome," he whispered back finally.  
  
The song was more than halfway done but for the moment, Harry was content to just hold Cho and dance as they had been doing for the past minute or so.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When Ruby finished singing, the entire Hall broke into applause and cheers.  
  
"Great Job!" a student called.  
  
"Can you sing it again?" another student asked.  
  
Ruby just smiled and curtsied before walking off the stage back to where Sepet was sitting.  
  
Harry and Cho also headed back towards their table with Ron and Hermione not far behind them.  
  
"Well done my dear," Walter was saying to Ruby. "I'm glad that you were able to join us this evening and sing, though I wish that you could visit and sing for us more often."  
  
"I think I'd either run out of songs or lose my voice before that happens," Ruby said jokingly, receiving a grin from Walter.  
  
"Well, I'm tired so I think I'll go back to the common room with Ron okay Harry?" said Hermione.  
  
"Sure thing, I'll see you later."  
  
Harry looked after Ron and Hermione as they left the Great Hall but his attention was diverted when Cho nudged him gently.  
  
"Harry - Parvati is leaving with Dean, Seamus and Padma," Cho informed him. "We should follow them and make sure nothing happens."  
  
"Okay, let's go," Harry whispered to her.  
  
"Ruby," Harry said. "We're going to return to the common room now, I'll see you later."  
  
"Okay Harry," Ruby replied and Harry and Cho followed the four students out of the Great Hall.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Harry and Cho were successful in trailing them for a while but when they got to the staircases leading up, Parvati and Seamus split off from Dean and Padma, heading in the direction of the Gryffindor tower.  
  
"Oh great." Cho muttered. "They're separating."  
  
"We should keep following Parvati - Ruby is still watching Sepet for us so nothing should happen to Dean or Padma."  
  
Cho nodded in acknowledgement and they headed up the staircase leading towards the Gryffindor tower after Parvati and Seamus.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they got to the Gryffindor tower, Harry and Cho paused just around the corner so that they could get a good view of what was going on.  
  
Parvati and Seamus had stopped outside of the portrait and they had apparently said the password for the portrait swung open moments later. They then entered the common room and the portrait closed quietly behind them.  
  
"Do you think we should we go in?" Harry asked.  
  
"If Hermione and Ron are in there, they would be able to keep an eye on Parvati and Seamus but we should probably make sure, just in case."  
  
Harry and Cho walked to the portrait of the Fat Lady and Harry said the password.  
  
"Good night dears, I hope you had fun at the ball," the Fat Lady said and the portrait swung open, allowing them entrance into the common room.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they got into the common room, Harry stopped dead in his tracks for he found Ron with one arm around Hermione sitting on the couch and staring at the fireplace.  
  
"Did you two see Parvati and Seamus enter?" Harry asked.  
  
Hermione nodded. "Parvati went up to her dorm after wishing Seamus good night. I'm very surprised that nothing happened tonight."  
  
Harry breathed a sigh of relief. "That's good to hear."  
  
"Harry - could you walk me back to the Ravenclaw tower?" Cho asked.  
  
"Sure," Harry said and he waved goodbye to Ron and Hermione.  
  
Then Harry and Cho exited the portrait once and headed in the direction of the Ravenclaw tower.  
  
"I wonder where everyone is," Cho said as they walked down the brightly lit halls. "The ball is nearly over so we should have encountered some other students by now."  
  
"Maybe they're asking Ruby for autographs," Harry joked, receiving a slight laugh from Cho.  
  
"I really loved her singing - she really has a beautiful voice."  
  
"Yeah," Harry agreed. "If people knew about her earlier, I think every guy in this school would be lining up to ask her to the ball."  
  
"I wouldn't be surprised if that happened after this but how did you come to meet her?"  
  
"I met her in Diagon Alley over the summer while I was trying to meet with Sirius and we got to know each other a bit."  
  
"So how come we haven't seen her around here until now if she's been giving you lessons?"  
  
"Uh." Harry hesitated. He needed to come up with something quickly before Cho suspected something but his mind was a blank.  
  
Cho smiled sadly at him. "If you don't want to tell me, that's okay. I understand if you two have your secrets."  
  
Harry was thrown off by what she had just said. It was almost as if Cho thought he was dating Ruby or something but if that was the case, he needed to make it clear that he had no interest in dating Ruby at all.  
  
"You almost make it sound as if I'm dating her but that's not the case. I don't have any interest in dating her at all if that's what you're thinking."  
  
"Sorry - I just thought that there might have been interfering with something that you two had going on."  
  
"It's okay - seeing that you saw me sitting next to her this morning, I wouldn't be surprised if you did think that I was going out with her."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
They eventually arrived at the Ravenclaw tower and Cho turned around to say goodbye to Harry.  
  
"Thank you so much for coming with me to the ball Harry. I had such a wonderful time and I only wish that the night didn't end but I'm content to know that I'll be going to sleep a lot more cheerful than I have been in months."  
  
Harry smiled at her. "I enjoyed spending time with you too and I'm glad that you're happy again."  
  
Cho then ran up to him and gave him a hug, which lasted for more than half a minute before she pulled away.  
  
"Good night Harry," Cho said and she stood up on her tiptoes to give him a quick kiss on the cheek.  
  
"Good night Cho," Harry said as Cho turned around to say the password to the entrance of the Ravenclaw tower. "Sweet dreams."  
  
The portrait swung open and Cho walked in and turned around with a smile to wave good bye. The portrait then closed and Harry walked back to the Gryffindor tower in high spirits.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When he arrived back at the portrait, he found that Ruby was waiting for him already.  
  
"Hi Harry, how did it go?" Ruby asked as he came into view.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"Cho you silly idiot," Ruby said playfully. "Did you ask her to be your girlfriend?"  
  
Harry stared at her in shock causing Ruby to laugh at him.  
  
"I'll take that as a no but I think it wouldn't hurt you to ask her out, especially since Hermione is now with Ron. At least you'll have somebody."  
  
"I hadn't even thought of asking her out yet," Harry said quickly. "What makes you think I would?"  
  
"The fact that you were holding her so close to you tonight. People don't usually do that unless they're really good friends or were dating."  
  
Harry opened his mouth to retort but shut it immediately for as much as it never crossed his mind to ask Cho out ever since Cedric had died, there was some truth to what Ruby had said. Cho did indeed have quite a few things in common with him and now that he had taken it upon himself to protect her happiness, asking her out would allow him to fulfill his goal a lot easier than if they remained friends.  
  
"I see I've struck gold," Ruby teased. "You haven't responded yet."  
  
"Oh be quiet," Harry muttered, pulling out his wand and pointing at Ruby.  
  
Ruby giggled at his behaviour. "I think I've tortured you enough for tonight - Good night Harry, sleep well."  
  
"Good night Ruby," Harry replied. " - Finite Incantatem."  
  
Ruby's figure faded and eventually disappeared completely, leaving only a pile of dirt on the floor as the only evidence that she was even there.  
  
With that, Harry picked up the pile of dirt and entered the portrait once again. Throwing the dirt into the fireplace, Harry then went up to his dorm, washed his hands, and climbed into bed. That night Harry slept a lot easier and more content than he had been over the past four weeks prior to the ball.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A/N: Woo hoo! Sorry it took so long to post but you get a longer than normal chapter(more like the length of two chapters). I had so much fun writing this and I hope you all like it.  
  
Temporary Insanity: Unanswerable questions? Not about the plot I hope =)  
  
Order of Dumbledor: Thanks for the review. I'm glad you like the plot but keep reading and you won't be disappointed.  
  
Kal_23: If you want to write a fic on here, you need to create an account first. Just click on the register button and then you can create an account but I think you need to be above age 13. Then you can write & post chapters as you please.  
  
Blackdragoneye: Thank you for your review. I don't think I'll add Voldemort's heir in there since it'll only complicate things but we'll see. I haven't heard many rumours about book six so I'm not exactly sure where I'll take that yet. As for the other guardians in human form, I may do that but as far as this book is concerned, you won't be seeing any of the others besides Ruby in their human forms because I wouldn't know what personalities to give them.  
  
Hr: Hermione will realize her feelings for Harry. next book. Sorry if you're disappointed here but I was following what Rowling had said in her interview and would put Ron with Hermione for at least a book, though she did say there's always room for change when questioned if Harry would get with Hermione ^^.  
  
Amber: Thanks for the compliment though I don't know if I write as well as Rowling. The earlier chapters are riddled with grammar errors, etc and this plot isn't as encompassing as hers even though it may cover quite a bit already. Parvati became a vampire around the time that Lavender was crying about her not waking up. Hmm, your questions about the pairings and what happens to Dumbledore, you'll have to keep reading to find out since I can't give away the rest of the plot.  
  
Angelis: I don't mind being bugged about fast updates so by all means, go ahead and bug me about it.  
  
Marba50: You got lost in the chapter? Er, figuratively or literally? If there's something you didn't get in the previous chapter, ask me about it.  
  
Angie: Thanks for reviewing and glad you like the spells. Heroes is a good game =).  
  
Cleo: Hmm. something to save for later. Thanks for the idea - it would make a very good conflict and a very difficult one for Harry to solve.  
  
Phoenix of Light: Thanks for reviewing. Hope you liked this chap just as much as the previous ones.  
  
Potty: The idea about R/Hr was to follow Rowling's idea that she'd put those two together for at least one book but change it later. Based on what Rowling has written, I think that Hermione has a crush on Ron but loves Harry, especially since she kissed him on the cheek instead of Ron at the end of book 4. Most people don't go around kissing people like that if they didn't have some feelings for them, right?  
  
Alpha Krypton: This book will end probably about the same as the rest of Rowling's books so it won't go into book 6.  
  
Mysterious righter: I won't stop writing this fic because it's just too fun to write so you don't have to worry about that. As I've said before, as long as people read it, I'll keep on writing.  
  
JD: I'm glad that you like the fic but as for H/Hr, I've told other people this and I'll tell you the same thing.based on what Rowling has said in her interviews, she admitted that there was something going on between Ron and Hermione. That means she'd put them together for at least one book and since I am doing the pairings based upon what she has said, I put Ron and Hermione together for this book. However Rowling also said, when asked if Harry would get with Hermione or Ginny, that he was only 14 and there's plenty of time to change his mind. Therefore he could potentially get with either character but since I am a H/Hr supporter, that's what I will do but not just yet. After all, the relationships that form slowly are the ones that tend to last the longest, don't you agree? 


	31. Chapter 29: Order 03: Abduction

A/N: Since no one is using the nick Tassadar, I will be under the penname Tassadar from now so the numbers behind my name will be dropped.  
  
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 29: Order 03: Abduction  
  
Ever since the Valentine's ball, Harry's attention turned to practicing his spells and using his sword for he knew that in the upcoming missions, both Hermione and Cho would be in extreme danger. Despite the danger he would also be in, Harry was looking forward to not only fulfilling his resolution to protect Cho but also to rescue Dumbledore who had guided him for the past four years he had spent at Hogwarts. Furthermore, Ron was still absolutely clueless as to the Phoenix order and thus Harry would have to make sure that Hermione came out alive. This was not only because he still had some feelings for his best friend but also because Ron would be completely devastated if anything were to happen to her, not to mention quite enraged at him.  
  
However the day where his resolve would be tested came all too soon for the news that Harry had been waiting for anxiously and dreading arrived two weeks after the Valentine's ball during breakfast.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Headmaster found guilty of Treason and Corruption -Rita Skeeter  
  
The trial at which the former headmaster of Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore, was tried for treason and corruption was completed last week and a verdict has now been reached. Thanks to the ever watchful Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, acting as witness to the crime of the deceptive headmaster's attempt of freeing the Death Eaters of Azkaban, Albus Dumbledore was found guilty unanimously by the jury.  
  
As a result, the headmaster will be removed from his prestigious office at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and will be sentenced to life imprisonment in Azkaban with the rest of his kind. The transfer will take place sometime within the week. Unfortunately, the criminal Harry Potter, was not brought to trial since his charges were dropped due to the fact that witnesses testified that he was present at Hogwarts and had never left the school.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"This is just horrible!" Ron exclaimed when they had all read the Daily Prophet. "Why isn't anyone doing anything about this?"  
  
"I think they are," Hermione said, looking over the article once more. "This isn't your typical trial Ron, it was rigged and we know it but there isn't much you can do at the moment."  
  
"Are you suggesting we give up on Dumbledore?" Ron countered exasperatedly.  
  
"No, I'm not saying that we should give up on him but there are other ways to get him back," Hermione pointed out. "But at least be glad that Harry wasn't brought to trial at the time of the incident."  
  
"Calm down Ron before you make a scene," Harry interrupted. "I think Hermione is right and it's best if we leave it to the teachers."  
  
"At any rate, we need to be going to class," Hermione said, getting up from her seat and gathering up her books. "We don't want to be late."  
  
"Mr. Potter - Miss Granger," they heard Professor McGonagall say. "I'd like a word with both of you. Move a long Mr. Weasley, they should be joining you shortly."  
  
Harry and Hermione threw Ron a look of confusion but they quickly followed Professor McGonagall out of the Great Hall without question.  
  
Once there were no students within earshot, McGonagall began to explain the reason for pulling them aside. "The Order has been assembled and the other students are being pulled away as we speak. I'm sure you know about the news regarding the headmaster."  
  
Harry couldn't help but grin for this was the moment that he had been looking for. "Yes Professor, we've heard."  
  
"Good - but time is short," McGonagall said, now guiding them in the direction of Dumbledore's office. "We need to prepare and send out a group by this afternoon if we want to get the information we need."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they arrived at Dumbledore's office, Harry found that almost everyone was there with the exception of the students. Sirius was there with Arabella Figg and he gave Harry a wide grin that Harry returned enthusiastically.  
  
The door opened and the rest of the students arrived with Walter. Oddly enough, Harry noticed a slight glow coming from his hand and upon looking down he saw something that he hadn't noticed before in a meeting; his ring was glowing red.  
  
"Hi Harry," Cho whispered, sitting down next to him. "Are you looking forward to this, how about you?"  
  
Harry grinned and nodded. "Same here."  
  
Once everyone had sat down, Professor McGonagall stood up to speak. "I'm sure that all of you have read the Daily Prophet and know that our headmaster was found guilty of treason."  
  
There were nods around the room and McGonagall continued. "Although I am not a big fan of Skeeter, she is telling part of the truth in that they would be transfer him to Azkaban sometime this week."  
  
"How do you know if this is true?" Alastor Moody asked with a low growl.  
  
"Mr. Weasley was able to confirm that since he does work for the Minister himself," McGonagall pointed out.  
  
"So how do you propose we proceed?" asked Professor Snape coldly.  
  
"That's where I come in," Sirius cut in, getting up from his seat and walking to the center of the room. He then proceeded to conjure up a map that displayed the layout of two parallel roads connected by two smaller roads running north south.  
  
"This is a map of where the death eater Avery lives, located in York. He lives at the end of Kilburn road which is the southern road running east- west along the map. 64 Kilburn Road is the address."  
  
"Bit far from London isn't it?" Terry commented.  
  
"Not when you can apparate," Sirius pointed out. " - At any rate, this upcoming mission will require that everything is kept silent and stealth is of the utmost importance. Therefore only a group of four to six people will be all."  
  
The sound of wood shifting on stone was heard and Harry turned his attention to Walter who was just getting up from his chair.  
  
"The roles will be very simple," Walter explained as he walked towards the center to stand next to Sirius. "Two abductors to get the package and get out, and four lookouts to watch for problems. Two in the front of the mansion, two in the back should be enough to ensure that he doesn't escape and that no help comes."  
  
"I assume that Avery will not be willing to go without a fight to Moody and Sepet will be the ones to take care of him," Sirius added. "Walter volunteered to be one of the lookouts in the front of the mansion and I will be one of the lookouts in the back."  
  
"So now all we need is two volunteers to complete the team for this mission," Walter said.  
  
Harry nearly jumped out of his seat at being offered the chance to participate in obtaining information of Dumbledore's whereabouts since Harry wanted nothing more than to get Dumbledore back and this would just be one step in achieving his goal. However he settled for a calm, "I'll volunteer," at which both Hermione and Cho looked in his direction, their faces full of concern.  
  
Sirius beamed at Harry, "All right, anyone else?"  
  
"There's no point in putting any other students in danger," Arthur Weasley stated. "I'll be the other one."  
  
A squawk was heard in the room and everyone turned their heads to find Fawkes perched on his stand in the back of the room.  
  
"Ah yes, we shouldn't leave Fawkes out," said Walter with a smile. "He will be providing some of the transportation for us. Since Alastor and Arthur can apparate and Lord Sepet can fly on his own while carrying Sirius, Harry and I will travel with Fawkes since we can't have a portkey set up in time."  
  
"When do we leave?" Harry asked.  
  
"We will have to leave this afternoon in order to get there by the time Avery gets back from the ministry," Sirius explained. "He doesn't exactly follow a definite schedule since he's one of the more paranoid Death Eaters. However he is always home in time for supper, which is around 7."  
  
"Therefore if we leave at around 5PM, we should get there in time," said Walter. "York is quite a distance from London after all."  
  
"How will we know where to go and what the inside of the mansion looks like?" Arthur questioned.  
  
"The only people that will need to know about the layout will be Lord Sepet and Alastor since they are the ones to carry out the actual abduction," Walter said.  
  
"How do we get out with Avery?"  
  
"We'll have a portkey ready to get him here. It's set so that it directly transports him into the dungeon we've prepared for him. In addition, to make sure that he doesn't just grab the portkey and get back home, we've set it up so that it is a one way portkey."  
  
"I thought we couldn't apparate or disapparate within Hogwarts," Hermione pointed out. "It's common knowledge."  
  
Walter smiled at her. "You were always the one to bring up these facts but we already thought of it. That's why we're leaving from Hogsmeade."  
  
"However," Walter continued, glancing at a timepiece in his hand. "We should allow the professors and students, with the exception of Mr. Potter, to return to their classes before anyone in the school questions - Mr. Weasley," Walter addressed Percy, "Please take care of my class."  
  
"I will do my best," Percy replied and all of the professors got up and quietly left the room with all of the students but Hermione and Cho didn't move.  
  
"Miss Chang - Miss Granger," Walter said, noticing that neither Cho nor Hermione had budged from their seats. "Is something wrong?"  
  
"Um." Cho began. "Why are you allowing Harry to go on this mission alone rather than send someone else with more experience, like Miss Figg?"  
  
"I agree with Cho here," Hermione said firmly. "Harry will be put in quite a bit of danger."  
  
"Well, since it is an infiltration mission, I could argue that he is in no - " Walter began to state.  
  
"If Harry goes, I want to go," Hermione cut in before he could finish.  
  
"If she goes, I go too," Cho added.  
  
"Miss Granger - Miss Chang, I understand your concern for your friend," Walter said. "However if we include you both in the mission, there will be the problem of transportation and chance of detection will increase."  
  
"But - "  
  
"I'm sure you both wish to come along but if you two are missing, who will be around to explain to your friend, Mr. Weasley why your other friend has disappeared?"  
  
Hermione and Cho fell silent and got up to leave.  
  
"We'll see you later ok Harry?" Cho said to him as she and Hermione exited the room.  
  
"Bye Harry," said Hermione as she reached to close the door.  
  
"Ok - I'll see you later," Harry called disappointedly as the door closed.  
  
Once the door closed, Harry immediately turned his attention back to Sirius who was now speaking.  
  
"Now we must go on to explain how the mission will proceed. - Once the entire team has arrived, both look out teams will take their places in the front and rear of the mansion," Sirius said, bringing up another map of the grounds layout surrounding the mansion. The mansion was surrounded by a high fence with high hedges just on the inside of it. The rear of the mansion had a pool and a fountain in the middle of a small courtyard but like the front, hedges also surrounded it.  
  
"There are thick hedges on either side of the mansion entrance and around the gates that separate the grounds from the street," Sirius explained. "However we will carefully place the lookouts near the gate so that they can intercept anyone coming in from the front that could be viewed as hostile."  
  
"The others will be placed in the rear on either side of the rear entrance," Walter continued. "Once we have Avery, Alastor will send up red sparks into the air indicating that the mission is complete and we will get out the way we came in. Any questions?"  
  
No one spoke up so Walter proceeded to talk. "Since this will take place in an area with muggles, we will have to use stunning spells only. We don't want to draw attention by using anything that could potentially raise questions later. - That will be all, you are all dismissed. I will see you all later this afternoon."  
  
"I wish we had more people that thought like you in our auror division, Mr. Laikov," Moody commented. "You truly understand how to handle a mission."  
  
Walter smiled and bowed slightly towards Moody. "Coming from an experienced auror like yourself, I am honoured by your praise."  
  
With that, the remaining people in the room got up and left, however Walter and Sirius remained in the room. Seeing this, Harry likewise pushed back his chair and got up to leave.  
  
"Harry," Sirius called as he was about to leave. "I'll see you later. It was good to see you again."  
  
Harry grinned at him and ran up to Sirius to give him a warm hug. "Thank you Sirius, it's good to see you too and I'm glad that you made it back safely."  
  
Sirius chuckled happily. "That's my godson, now off to class before you miss it completely."  
  
Harry nodded and ran out of the room towards Professor Flitwick's classroom for his charms class.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Later that afternoon, Harry was called down to Walter's office to meet with Walter and Sirius to prepare for the upcoming mission.  
  
When he arrived at the dungeons after bidding good-bye to Hermione and Cho, who looked a little crestfallen, Harry found Fawkes perched upon a skull on the table that was off to the right just as he entered the room. However he also found that Sepet was there and that Walter was cleaning his dagger.  
  
"Hullo Walter - Professor Sepet - Sirius," Harry greeted as he entered the room. "What are you doing Walter?"  
  
Walter looked up from his work and smiled at Harry. "Since we'll be in an area filled with muggles, I thought it would be better if I used this dagger to kill anyone."  
  
"Won't that draw attention to yourself?" Harry asked. "You are dressed in something that the muggles wouldn't normally see everyday."  
  
"Perhaps, but in the case I needed to kill anyone, it would look more natural if I stabbed them than if I threw a spear at them."  
  
"Good point." Harry muttered. "Except for the fact that you could just stun them."  
  
"That's something he can't do," Sepet said, having overheard Harry's comment. "Walter's spells, unlike mine, do not have the capability to stun anyone. He can only kill them or injure them badly."  
  
"I think that should do it," Walter said, sheathing the dagger again.  
  
"Well, we're going to be late - Alastor and Arthur will be joining us when we get there," Sirius interrupted. "We should get going."  
  
Sirius then transformed into a dog and Sepet led the way out.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Along the way to the front of the school, Fawkes came to join them and Sepet's figure suddenly dispersed into hundreds of bats.  
  
The bats then went to pick up Sirius and flew up into the evening sky. Once they were out of sight, Fawkes let out a low squawk and he flew into the air to hover over Harry and Walter in order to allow them to grab on to his tail.  
  
Walter grabbed on to Fawkes' tail and Harry proceeded to do the same, however before he was able to, he heard the sound of Hermione's voice calling his name.  
  
"HARRY!" Hermione shouted as she ran down the steps at the front of the school.  
  
Harry turned to face her only to find himself enveloped in a tight hug.  
  
"Hermione! You aren't supposed to be here, where's Ron?"  
  
"I'm sorry Harry," Hermione said, looking up into his eyes. "I just wanted to see you off. Cho is keeping Ron busy right now and - Oh please do be careful Harry."  
  
Harry smiled. "Don't worry Hermione, I'll come back alive, don't worry."  
  
Harry then turned serious and faced Hermione. "Listen, do me a favour. While we were in the meeting earlier, I noticed that my ring was glowing. Sepet wasn't there so something else must be wrong. I want you to investigate it while I'm gone ok?"  
  
Hermione nodded nervously. "Okay. I'll take care of it."  
  
"Here," Harry said, handing her his ring. "This should help you out."  
  
Harry turned around to face Walter who, he noticed, was looking at him intently before turning back to face Hermione. "I need to go now."  
  
Hermione smiled weakly with a glimmer of sadness. "We'll have a surprise waiting for you."  
  
With that, Hermione leaned over and kissed Harry on the cheek. "For good luck."  
  
"Thanks Hermione," Harry replied with a smile as Hermione withdrew and stood in front of him. "I'll see you later."  
  
"I'll be waiting," Hermione said and Harry grabbed on to Fawkes' tail as well.  
  
Instantly Harry felt all of his weight lifted from his body and he felt extraordinarily light. Fawkes took off into the evening sky but Harry couldn't resist looking back at Hermione's figure standing on the steps in front of the school which was quickly getting smaller as Fawkes rose higher and higher.  
  
After what seemed like hours, Hermione was no longer visible to Harry but he continued to glance back at the school until it was completely out of sight. In the evening sky, the school had looked quite beautiful indeed and Harry thought it would be great if Cho was there to see it with him. Yet in thinking back to Cho, he was quite curious as to why Hermione had been the one to say goodbye to him rather than her.  
  
"Quite a pleasant view, no?" Walter's voice was heard, drawing Harry's attention away from his thoughts.  
  
"Yes it is," Harry said, looking at Walter. "What should we expect when we get there?"  
  
Walter looked at him with a thoughtful expression written all over his face. "I'd expect that it should be a quick mission and that there shouldn't be any trouble at all."  
  
"What happens if they are expecting us?"  
  
"Then we'll have to fight our way out but we'll be fine. There should be no need to worry Mr. Potter. The enemy isn't expecting us and so we will have the element of surprise."  
  
Harry nodded and glanced down at the trees and hills of grass below them. The trees weren't going by in a blur but they were moving by relatively quickly. They hadn't passed over any towns or cities along the way so Harry assumed that Fawkes was avoiding them all in order not to arouse suspicion.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
By the time they arrived over York, the sun had disappeared completely and the streets weren't visible from the sky. The street lamps however were but Fawkes continued to fly on until they were over what Harry thought to be Avery's mansion. Once there, Fawkes hovered and slowly descended onto the front lawn.  
  
Walter didn't wait for Fawkes to land for he let go of the Phoenix tail and fell to the ground, executing a perfect forward roll before getting up on his feet. Seeing this, Harry followed suit, or tried to. He let go of the tail but unlike Walter, he landed on the ground in a crumpled heap.  
  
"Are you all right Mr. Potter?" Walter asked, running towards him and helping him up.  
  
Harry nodded. "I'm ok. Nothing seems broken."  
  
"Good, now let's get out of sight before someone spots us from the house or the street."  
  
They then ran towards the hedges near the front gate as they had previously planned and took cover where they had a clear view of both the streets and the front of the mansion.  
  
The street was well dimly lit by street lamps and was completely empty with the exception of a few muggles walking along the sidewalk.  
  
The mansion on the other hand had a pathway leading towards the front entrance lined by well trimmed bushes and there was a small fountain in the middle of the lawn, lined up perfectly with the double doors in the front. A few lights were lit in the mansion but no movement could be seen through any of the windows.  
  
"Now all we need to do is wait for Lord Sepet and Alastor," Walter said, crouching down on one knee. "You keep an eye on the street, I'll watch the house."  
  
"All right," Harry whispered, crouching down as well, and he turned his attention towards the street, keeping an eye out for trouble.  
  
Minutes seemed like hours to Harry as he intently watched the street, earnestly waiting for Sepet and Moody to arrive so that they could go home.  
  
A whoosh and rustling of leaves was heard overhead and Harry to look around to see what it was but when he looked at Walter, he saw that he was already drawing his dagger.  
  
"Stay here while I look to see what it is," Walter instructed him.  
  
Harry nodded and continued to look around at his surroundings, just in case something should attack them.  
  
In the mean time, Walter moved along the hedges out of sight to investigate what the noise was. Tense moments passed without a sound but that didn't last long as Harry heard a feminine muffled cry that sounded all too familiar. Harry left his position and followed along the hedges in the direction that Walter had left.  
  
However Harry did not have to wait long for Walter reappeared with a girl dressed in a Hogwarts school uniform. Walter smiled at Harry and removed his hand from the girl's mouth while releasing her from the grip that he had her in.  
  
"Harry!" Cho exclaimed, running towards him and enveloping him in a tight hug.  
  
"Wh - Cho, what are you doing here?" Harry said in shock as he slowly returned Cho's hug.  
  
"I'm sorry Harry but I couldn't let you go on this mission alone," Cho said softly as she released him from the hug. "I was too worried that something might happen to you."  
  
"That's okay Cho," Harry comforted her. "I'm glad that you're here."  
  
Cho smiled at him and hugged him again but Walter interrupted them. "Lord Sepet should be here and you will want to retrieve your broom from the lawn miss Chang."  
  
Cho nodded and disappeared around the hedges for a moment to get her broom. When she reappeared, Harry led her back to where they had been observing the street.  
  
"It's been relatively quiet so far," Harry told Cho. "However there isn't any sign of Sepet."  
  
There was a loud bark and the sound of many wings flapping was heard overhead. Harry looked up to see what it was but he could only assume that it was Sepet and Sirius for it was too dark to see anything over the house.  
  
"Lord Sepet is here," Walter whispered to them. "Stand ready for trouble."  
  
"How does he know if Professor Sepet is here or not?" Cho asked him, drawing her dagger and wand.  
  
"He probably can sense his master," Harry whispered, following suit with his wand and sword. "But how he does that, I wouldn't know."  
  
"Watch the street for trouble Cho," Harry said. "I'll watch the house."  
  
"Okay," Cho acknowledged and she turned around to face the street, leaning on Harry's back in the process.  
  
In this position and such close proximity to Cho, Harry found it very hard to concentrate on observing the house since it was rather pleasant to be so close to her with her back warming his.  
  
Suddenly a figure dressed in a wizard robe and wearing a black top hat appeared in front of the house and unlocked the front door.  
  
"Walter," Harry said, catching Walter's attention. "Avery just arrived."  
  
"I saw," Walter replied. "Now we just wait for Alastor and Lord Sepet to carry out their task."  
  
Sure enough, as if on cue, Harry's keen vision picked up a figure in a wizard's robe appear on the roof and another figure assembled aside him clothed entirely in black.  
  
Harry then saw Sepet climb down the front of the house, very much like a lizard and somehow unlock one of the windows on the top floor. Sepet slipped through the window's opening and disappeared from view.  
  
At that moment, Harry felt Cho move away from him suddenly and he turned around to see what was wrong.  
  
"What's wrong Cho?" he asked.  
  
Cho didn't replay but pointed towards the street at a muggle who was standing up against the lamp post on opposite side of the street.  
  
"It's a muggle, what of it?"  
  
"Look more carefully," Cho said.  
  
Harry carefully looked the muggle over but he didn't notice anything odd about him except that his hands were gloved. However when Harry looked at the muggle's hands he noticed the glimmer of a silver object in his hand. A knife.  
  
"Is it normal for muggles to carry knives around?" Cho asked.  
  
"I don't think so," Harry said. "Muggles are very strict about carrying weapons in public."  
  
"Wait, there's another muggle," Cho said, pointing to another one walking towards the muggle with the knife.  
  
"Walter," Harry called. "There's a muggle with a knife across the street. Something might be wrong."  
  
Unfortunately, Harry had spoken too soon for he heard a yell pierce the quiet night. Looking back at the muggle with the knife, Harry noticed that he wasn't standing at the lamp post any longer. In fact, the muggle was grappling with the one who was walking towards him earlier.  
  
"Give me your money, NOW!" the muggle with the knife commanded.  
  
Walter, seeing this, immediately drew his dagger and ran towards the front gate separating the estate from the street. He then kicked the gate continuously until the padlock keeping it shut fell off and the gate swung open.  
  
"YOU THERE! STAY WHERE YOU ARE!" Walter shouted as he ran towards the armed muggle with his dagger in his hand. "DON'T MOVE!"  
  
Hearing another person come towards, the muggle immediately drew another weapon, pointed at the unarmed muggle and fired. Harry heard the loud bang echo through the night sky and he saw that the muggle's body went limp and that blood had splattered all over the sidewalk as the bullet went straight through the body.  
  
The armed muggle then dropped the body and searched its pockets for something. Walter was now more than halfway across the street. He took something out of the dead muggle's body and smiled. Then he pointed his weapon at Walter and was about to pull the trigger when Harry pointed his wand at the muggle and fired a stunning spell.  
  
The spell flew through the air and struck him in the chest, knocking him out completely but when Walter got to the unconscious body, Harry could see that Walter's face was twisted in anger.  
  
"Mr. Potter," Walter called. "I will need your assistance with this."  
  
Harry turned to Cho and told her to stay put while he went to help Walter.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
By the time Harry reached Walter on the other side of the street, Walter was already leaning over the body of the muggle that had just been shot and examining the body.  
  
"He's dead," Walter said, taking his hand away from the muggle's neck in order to check for a pulse.  
  
Walter shook his head and stood up. "Mr. Potter, revive the other one."  
  
Harry nodded and pointed his wand at the stunned muggle. "Ennervate."  
  
The muggle slowly revived and shook off the stun but he never got the chance to get up for Walter kicked him hard in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him and causing the muggle to throw up some stomach acid and saliva.  
  
"For every crime," Walter said, kicking the muggle in the ribs. "There is a price to pay."  
  
The muggle screamed in pain and rolled over on the pavement, leaving his back facing Walter.  
  
"Now you will pay the price," Walter continued and kicked the muggle in the back, around where the kidneys would be and the muggle screamed in pain even more as every muscle in his body tensed up.  
  
"Walter, that's enough," Harry said, not enjoying the scene very much. "We have a mission to get back to."  
  
"Remember Harry," Walter told him. "If there's one type of person that never deserves to live, it's a criminal."  
  
Walter kicked the muggle one last time in the small of his back with the point of his boot, paralyzing him from the waist down. He then turned the muggle over so that he was looking directly at his face.  
  
"W-Who are you?" asked the muggle with fear written all over his face. "What business is it of yours if I decide to go mug someone?"  
  
"Muggles such as yourself are criminals and don't deserve to live," came the cold reply.  
  
"There's nothing wrong with wanting to steal his money. I j-just wanted to relieve him of his burden and make it mine. You're not a bobby. My parents will press charges for victimizing me. You hear? I'm the victim of this, not the person I killed. He only died because you interfered."  
  
"If I leave no witnesses, they won't know who to press charges," Walter said, bringing out his dagger. "The penalty for taking a life is to pay with your own and I hereby sentence you to death."  
  
"It's your fault he died, all your fau ."  
  
The muggle never had time to finish his statement for Walter quickly thrust the dagger into his throat and flipped it to that the point was now facing downward before stabbing the muggle again in the heart.  
  
Harry stood there quite horrified at Walter's brutal treatment of the muggle and the swift execution as blood continued to ooze out of the injuries and soak the sidewalk in blood.  
  
Walter then withdrew his bloody dagger from the body and sheathed it. Harry could see that a spot of blood was already there from the initial injury but when the dagger was removed, the spot quickly grew and spread throughout the shirt, adding even more to the already growing pool of blood on the sidewalk.  
  
After several moments of staring in utter horror, Harry finally gathered the courage to speak. "Was that really necessary? What if the muggles see us?"  
  
"There shouldn't be anyone around here at all," Walter said, heading back towards the hedges. "We should go."  
  
Harry started to walk back towards the hedges where they were hiding previously but he couldn't help but look back at the dead bodies lying there on the sidewalk. Surely they would attract suspicion.  
  
"Walter, should we be leaving the bodies there?"  
  
"Leave them, they won't know who to come after," Walter said, now running back towards their hiding spot.  
  
Harry took one look back at the two dead muggles but quickly broke into a run so that he wouldn't be left out in the open anywhere near the dead bodies and upon arriving at the front gates, he then saw red sparks fly into the air from the roof of the mansion.  
  
Cho came up to meet Harry as soon as he arrived at the hedges with her broom looking a little pale but she nevertheless shakily said something to him. "Time to go Harry."  
  
Soon Fawkes reappeared with Sirius and Walter took hold of its tail.  
  
"Come on," Walter urged him. "We need to get out quickly."  
  
"If you don't want to go with Walter on Fawkes, you can ride on the broom with me," Cho told him, smiling slightly. "I don't mind."  
  
Harry was rather grateful of Cho's offer since he was feeling quite uneasy about going with Walter on Fawkes. "Sure."  
  
"I'll ride with Cho on her broom," Harry called.  
  
Walter nodded his head in acknowledgement and said something inaudible to Fawkes.  
  
"See you back at the castle," Sirius said loudly as Fawkes then took off in the direction of Hogwarts.  
  
"All right, shall we go?" Cho asked him, climbing onto her broom.  
  
"Okay," Harry said and he too mounted the broom right behind her.  
  
With that, Harry and Cho kicked off, taking off in the direction that Fawkes had left in.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Do you know the way?" Harry asked Cho.  
  
"I think I do, how else do you think I found you?"  
  
Harry grinned, "Then please do the honours of directing us."  
  
Cho looked back at him and smiled. "Only if you handle the broom."  
  
"Deal, now where do we go?"  
  
"Just go in the direction that Fawkes went in and we should get there," Cho instructed, pointing in the direction that Fawkes had flown in.  
  
With that, Cho leaned back lazily into Harry's chest but kept a grip on the broom with her hands. "I wonder why Walter killed that muggle. That wasn't really necessary."  
  
"I wouldn't know. He can be every bit as brutal as Sepet but unlike Sepet there is also a playful side to him and I suppose it's his way of carrying out justice."  
  
"A life for a life?"  
  
"Probably but then again, what that muggle was saying before Walter killed him was almost as if he thought it was his right to steal and murder. I mean he was referring to himself almost as if he was the victim, not caring much for the person he had just killed."  
  
"He was? I couldn't hear what he was saying from where I was," said Cho.  
  
"Yeah."  
  
Cho's face twisted into a look of shock and horror. "How horrible. No one should be think it's right to take a life. That's why we're fighting against You-Know-Who in the first place."  
  
"I agree but somehow that muggle was led to believe that it was his right to do whatever he wanted to."  
  
"I don't think I'll ever understand the muggles. Their society is so different from our own - what kind of society doesn't enforce the laws that criminals think that they can do whatever they want?"  
  
The direction that the conversation was going in was starting to make Harry uneasy so he quickly made an attempt to change the subject. "I'm pretty sure that they bother to enforce the laws but they probably aren't so strict about it, almost like Flitwick."  
  
"Yes, Flitwick is such a nice professor," Cho commented agreeably. "He's a lot better than Snape in my opinion and I wish more professors would be like him."  
  
"Flitwick or Snape?"  
  
Cho laughed. "You are a funny one indeed Harry, why Flitwick of course."  
  
Harry grinned. "I was just making sure."  
  
"I like Snape as much as I like Malfoy," Cho said, gazing up at the starry night sky.  
  
Harry noticed this and saw that this was a perfect opportunity for some alone time with Cho.  
  
"The stars are beautiful tonight," Cho said dreamily. "Don't you think so?"  
  
Harry also glanced up at the night sky. "Yes they are but wait until we get back to the school. It looks better there."  
  
"All right, let's hurry. I wouldn't want to miss the beautiful view that you want to show me," Cho said, looking back at him and smiling.  
  
Harry smiled back and leaned forward on the broom causing it to accelerate until it couldn't go any faster, guiding it in the direction of the school.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
By the time Harry arrived at the school again, he could have thought that more than two hours had passed because the school was already well lit with torches and smoke could be seen coming from Hagrid's hut signaling the start of dinner.  
  
Unfortunately Cho was fast asleep, leaning against Harry's chest. Probably exhausted from the long trip he figured so he headed in the direction of the astronomy tower.  
  
A long, thin object, glowing a bright green colour, was shot into the air as Harry approached the Astronomy tower and it dispersed into many sparkling green particles once it reached a certain height, signalling him to land there. Figuring Walter was already waiting for him, Harry gently descended onto the astronomy tower so as not to wake Cho.  
  
Walter was indeed standing there waiting for them to land.  
  
"Cho," Harry whispered into her ear, "we're here."  
  
Cho stirred in her sleep and opened her eyes. "We're here already?"  
  
A mischievous smile played upon Harry's lips. "Yes dear, we're here."  
  
Cho sat up in surprise at being called 'dear' by Harry but since the broom was still hovering a foot over the ground, this caused Cho to fall off the broom and fall onto the floor.  
  
Harry couldn't resist laughing at the sight he caused but he promptly stopped laughing when Cho reached out a hand and pulled him by the leg, off his broom.  
  
"OOWW!" Harry exclaimed when he hit the floor next to Cho who was now laughing.  
  
"Can't say you deserved that one," Cho said smugly.  
  
A smile also fell upon Walter's face and he went to help both of them up. "Come now you two, we have work to do - Miss Granger will meet us at the South Tower."  
  
Harry had never been to the South Tower but Walter didn't give them much time to recover from their fall for he walked into the school at a brisk pace.  
  
Harry quickly grabbed the broom from the floor and he and Cho broke off into a run after Walter.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The South Tower was quite a way from the Astronomy Tower but when he arrived, he was pleased to find that Hermione was already waiting for them. However the first thing he noted was the glowing ring on her finger.  
  
"Harry!" Hermione said, running up to him and enveloping him in a hug. "I see that Cho found you. We thought it was best if one of us followed you to see that you were safe."  
  
Harry gently returned the hug and Hermione slowly broke away. "How was your day?"  
  
"It was great," said Hermione. "Ron is now on his rounds so I was able to get here. Unfortunately I didn't accomplish much in solving the problem you asked me to take care of Harry."  
  
"What problem?" Cho asked.  
  
"I'll tell you later," Harry whispered to Cho.  
  
"I will be going up now," Walter announced and he disappeared up the stairs.  
  
"I think we should follow Walter up," Cho remarked, starting up the stairs. "We don't want this one to get killed."  
  
"Do you think it's Walter?" Harry asked as they headed up the staircase after Walter.  
  
"Walter? Betray the Order?" Hermione asked thoughtfully. "That doesn't seem to make sense but he certainly does have the skill to do so."  
  
"The ring wasn't very helpful because Parvati was around," Hermione whispered to Harry.  
  
"That's ok, there's still time. I don't think that this death eater will get killed because there's too may people around," Harry whispered back. "We should figure out who the traitor is before something else goes wrong."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they arrived at the tower, Harry and Hermione were shocked to find that Avery was strapped down to a chair with magical bonds and there were all sorts of odd looking tools laid out on the table next to the fireplace which contained a roaring fire.  
  
"What are all the tools for?" Hermione asked Walter as she entered. "They look like they're used for killing or torture."  
  
"That's precisely why they are here," Walter stated, picking up an iron poker and placing it in the fire. "We can't use Veritaserum simply because there is a chance that Avery could be poisoned."  
  
"But you could easily have Snape prepare it," Cho said, looking at the tools in horror. "That way no one could slip poison in it."  
  
"Someone could easily slip poison in the ingredients," Walter said, withdrawing the iron poker from the fire to examine it. It had turned a reddish colour indicating that it was indeed hot.  
  
Walter then walked towards Avery who was staring at him in fear as he approached. "Now, let's see if this works."  
  
Walter lowered the hot poker until it was barely inches away from Avery's arm which was now perspiring from the heat and the nervous state that Avery was in.  
  
"Tell me Avery," Walter said in a voice that was almost like Snape's in that it was barely a whisper. "You are part of the Department of Transportation are you not?"  
  
Avery nodded.  
  
"Good - now you are aware of a certain prisoner transfer taking place some time soon, yes?"  
  
Another nod.  
  
"Who will you be transferring?"  
  
"High level prisoners that the Minister thinks are dangerous, including the former headmaster of Hogwarts, that's who you're looking for right?"  
  
"That's right," Walter said, keeping the hot poker above Avery's arm. "Now when and where will you be transferring him to?"  
  
"I don't know," Avery said, his voice starting to fall.  
  
"You're lying," Walter stated and he pressed the iron poker to Avery's hand.  
  
"AHHH!!" Avery screamed in pain, trying in vain to withdraw his hand from the poker. Harry could see the skin sear under the heat and even the surrounding skin had turned a charred, black colour.  
  
"I can't stand this anymore, this is wrong" Hermione said, running out the door. "I'm getting McGonagall."  
  
Harry wanted to run after her but Cho had fainted and so he had to see to it that she was ok, but until then Walter's torture act continued.  
  
"Now let's try again. Where are you taking him to?"  
  
Avery choked on his own saliva and writhed in pain but eventually was able to speak. "He's being transferred to Azkaban next week. He's being held in the Malfoy mansion right now where there's a charm in place so that he can't disapparate and no one can apparate in."  
  
Walter smiled and placed the iron poker on the table, making sure that the hot part wasn't touching the wood so as not to set the table on fire.  
  
The door opened and Professor McGonagall entered with Professor Snape carrying a flask of Veritaserum. Hermione was also behind them.  
  
"Ah, Minerva," Walter said with a bow. "How nice of you to come. Avery has just yielded the location of the headmaster."  
  
McGonagall was shaking in fury. "Walter, you know better than to torture the prisoners. Here, we have rules and those rules include treating the prisoners like human beings. We have our methods and you have yours but while you are here, you will follow our methods."  
  
Walter's smile disappeared slowly from his face. "As you wish. You may feed him the Veritaserum but Mr. Potter will be my witness that my methods had worked as well should Avery yield the same secrets as I had just extracted from him."  
  
"Very well - Serverus, give him the potion," McGonagall ordered.  
  
Snape then pulled out his wand, stunned Avery and opened his mouth so that he could pour the Veritaserum down his throat; reviving him afterwards.  
  
"Now, where can we find the headmaster and how long before you take him to Azkaban?" Snape questioned Avery.  
  
"The headmaster will be delivered to Azkaban by next week an is being held at Malfoy's mansion."  
  
Walter smiled slightly. "It is as he had said before, but I will take my leave of you now."  
  
With that, Walter left the room and Hermione broke in a sigh of relief. However Harry realized that Cho was still unconscious in his arms the entire time so he pulled out his wand and revived her.  
  
Her eyes opened slowly and Harry gently helped her to her feet.  
  
"Thanks Harry, did I miss something?" Cho asked him with a very confused look.  
  
Harry couldn't help but laugh at the confounded expression on Cho's face but he just shook his head. "Nothing that you wouldn't mind missing."  
  
"I guess that's good, right?"  
  
"Yes it is," Hermione said. "But we should get going - it's late and I think Ron is starting to worry where we are."  
  
"What time is it?"  
  
"It's around 9:00," McGonagall told them. "You should be heading up to your dorms. However Mr. Potter and Miss Chang may want to detour to the kitchen for your dinner."  
  
"Thank you Professor," Cho said as she turned to Harry. "Well, shall we go?"  
  
Harry nodded and the two of them, along with Hermione, headed down to the kitchens for dinner.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A/N: Well, that took way too long to post just one chapter and it didn't have as much action as I would have liked but the next two should have a decent amount. Next update shouldn't be anymore than longer than two weeks, providing midterms don't get in the way. I hope to post every Saturday so if you guys checked then, the next chapter should be up. Special thanks to Quis for beta-reading part of the chapter.  
  
Phoenix of Light: Bare the torture of R/Hr for now, it'll be a lot better later. I may not like R/Hr but this is only book 5 so as Rowling says, Harry has plenty of time to change his mind.  
  
Icedrake: Parvati was cured of vampirism? I wasn't aware of that. The H/Cho will last throughout the book and as for Sepet's role in the plot, you'll have to keep reading to find out.  
  
darthmaul2209: hmm, have Harry teach Cho some of the elemental magic? Maybe  
  
Shadow: updates are slow now, sorry. Too much work, argh!  
  
MaxLoneWolf: Thank you very much for the wonderful review. I would be more than happy to discuss any topic regarding Harry Potter you wish to discuss. Unfortunately, I don't have ICQ or MSN so I can only e-mail or IM you over AIM. As for the flamer, I figured out who it was. It's always nice having people everywhere to find out stuff for you. However I think that he just helped me rather than hurt me because his points don't make sense. As for Cho, although I'm a H/Hr shipper, I dislike it when people portray Cho as a mean/slutty girl. In fact, since she's the only Asian in the HP series, it makes me think that these authors are racist and being an Asian myself, I find that very frustrating because it's unrealistic.  
  
The-Dude: I will keep H/Cho for the rest of this fic as I have said before and you're right, changing the couples in this fic would completely ruin the whole thing. I'd wait until at least the next fic before trying anything like that.  
  
Angelis: =)  
  
Genius1724: I'll try to get chapter updates about once a week, on Saturday but work is piling up unfortunately.  
  
Elfin Warrior Maiden: I'm glad that you like the plot and it's nice to see that the time I put into thinking it out paid off.  
  
Talon 1: original magic, I wouldn't say that. most of it was ripped off the games I play though I wish I had invented them. The words to go with the spells though, those are my own invention with a few exceptions. As for Sepet, he's a vampire. They are naturally violent beings so if the extreme violence bothers you, I apologize but you're right, this wouldn't be fit for a child's movie.. The skeletons, yes that's a lot of dead bodies but skeletons last a long time so I'll just say that they're an accumulation of all the dead bodies that Walter has gathered over the years.. Also, all those people that Sepet has bitten have got to be useful for something, right?  
  
FictionalLove: Please be patient with the H/Cho romance scenes if they bother you. They're all part of the plot.  
  
Vinz: You'll be happy for the rest of this fic at the very least since H/Cho will last.  
  
Sikokid: yep, H/Cho will last throughout this book.  
  
Jordan: What do you mean who are the vampires? It should have been clarified after the Christmas chapter.  
  
Electrodragonman: send a copy to Rowling? Hahahaha, that'd be nice but I don't think she would use the animagus ideas. She stated in her interview that no one out of the trio will become an animagus.  
  
Katy999: Thanks for the review. I'll certainly try to update faster.  
  
steviej1026: ??? Why would I flame myself?  
  
Soccerpunx: Thank you. I'm glad you're enjoying the plot and the relationships.  
  
Charlie: Yeah, that's where the spells come from.  
  
Karenr9: unfortunately Rowling will do Ron/Hermione in her book and since I'm following her interviews for what to do about the relationships, this book will be H/Cho and Ron/Hermione but that's always subject to change as Rowling says. :) 


	32. Chapter 30: Order 04: Rescue

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and other characters belong to J.K. Rowling.  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 30: Order 04: Rescue  
  
Ever since their successful abduction mission, Harry had barely enough time to rest before he was again called to yet another order meeting. In fact, it was only about 36 hours before his 'normal' life at Hogwarts was interrupted again.  
  
Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Cho were sitting at dinner that evening when Professor McGonagall came to round them up for the meeting.  
  
"Mr. Potter, Miss Granger, and Miss Chang, please follow me," Professor McGonagall called as she approached the Gryffindor table.  
  
"How come you three always have to go somewhere?" Ron questioned.  
  
"Mr. Weasley, I trust you have your duties to attend to?" McGonagall said in response. "It's nearly time for your evening rounds. I apologise that Miss Granger will not be able to accompany you but I have something else for her to do which requires a student of her calibre."  
  
"What about Harry and Cho?" Ron followed up.  
  
"My patience is short Mr. Weasley," McGonagall threatened. "Do not force me to take off points from my own house."  
  
"Ron, it's useless to argue," Harry heard Hermione whisper next to him. "Just take care of it. I'll see you later anyway. This is your chance to show me that you're able to be a prefect which the students can look up to."  
  
Ron basically jumped out of his seat and headed out of the Great Hall at Hermione's challenge, enthusiastic to prove himself to Hermione.  
  
"Good job," Harry whispered to Hermione.  
  
Hermione gave him a smile. "I don't think that Ron could resist any chance to prove me wrong."  
  
"Enough dallying you three; get moving," McGonagall said, ushering the three students towards the door.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Upon entering Dumbledore's office, Harry found that it was arranged like normal and that all the seats were already filled with the exception of the students. However that was soon remedied as the rest of the students entered the room followed by Hagrid.  
  
"Harry!" Hagrid exclaimed and soon Harry found himself buried in the giant's thick overcoat. "How are yeh?"  
  
"I'm just fine Hagrid," came Harry's muffled reply. "But I can't breathe in here."  
  
Hagrid quickly let go of Harry. "Oh, sorry 'bout that."  
  
"May I call this meeting to order," Walter's voice echoed throughout the room.  
  
Hagrid sat down and everyone immediately gave Walter their full attention. Walter then conjured an image in the middle of the room which looked somewhat like an old castle.  
  
"This castle is where the ministry of magic is located," Walter explained. "and this will be our next target."  
  
McGonagall gave Walter a questioning look, "Why are we targeting our own ministry of magic when we know the headmaster is in Malfoy's mansion?"  
  
"My dear headmistress," Walter said. "The answer to that is simple. He is there under Fudge's orders and therefore he will not be released without a counter-order. Therefore it is necessary that we go there first and forget a release note."  
  
"I take it we're going to be apparating?" Percy asked.  
  
"Yes, but this time we'll also do floo powder for those who can't apparate," said Walter. "Our objective will be to capture Fudge and get him to forge the orders."  
  
"Can't we just fake his signature on some official looking parchment?" Hermione piped in.  
  
"That would work only until they test it with magic," Walter said. "It works a lot like your anti-cheating quills. Only a particular quill can sign the document otherwise the guards will know."  
  
"Oh..."  
  
"So the operation will go as follows." Walter began as the map began to zoom in; creating a 3D rendering of what was the top floor of the castle.  
  
"Fudge's office is located on the top floor of the castle - here." Walter said pointing to a large, double-doored room in the North end of the castle across from the staircase which was in the middle of the floor. There were only four other rooms, each in a corner, on the top floor but from the size of them, they were only guard towers for when the castle was under attack. "Tomorrow evening is a work day, students will not be in class but that will be the perfect opportunity for all of us to get Fudge."  
  
"You make it sound as if everyone is going, Walter" Arthur Weasley stated. "Why is that? Wouldn't it be easier to just send a small team in and get him to sign the papers and get out?"  
  
"Because, Arthur, there will indubitably be guards and if we were sending in a small team, our chances of actually getting past them will be less as opposed to disposing of all of the guards," Walter responded without hesitation.  
  
"So how should we proceed?" McGonagall asked.  
  
"We'll be going in two teams of eight each," Walter announced. "The Professors will be teaching so that leaves Minerva, Severus, Filius, Rubeus, and Lord Sepet out."  
  
Hermione gave Harry a questioning look and leaned over to whisper something in his ear, "That's funny. why is Sepet staying behind?"  
  
"I don't know," Harry whispered back. "One of us should probably stay behind then."  
  
"I'll do it," Hermione said. "This way Ron will be less suspicious."  
  
Hermione then raised her hand and Walter called on her. "Is there something wrong Miss Granger?"  
  
"Yes, I was wondering if I could stay behind so that Ron wouldn't be so suspicious if Harry and I were gone."  
  
Walter considered it for a moment and with a smile, he nodded his head. "That is logical indeed. Very well, you may stay behind Miss Granger. However that means that all of the other students will come along."  
  
"How do you plan to divide the teams?" Snape then questioned.  
  
"I think that we should have an equal amount of students and adults in each group. "I'll lead the first team and Arthur will lead the second," Walter said. "So that means Arthur, Molly, Percy, Bill, Remus, both Hufflepuffs, and Mr. Boot will be on the second team. Mundungus, Arabella, Moody, Sirius, Mr. Potter, Miss Chang, Miss Zabini, and myself will be on the first team."  
  
Walter started to pace the room as he continued his briefing. "I think that it won't matter which team does what but what matters is the position that each team ends up in."  
  
"One team will need to be on the floor right below to get rid of any possible threats and the other will need to be on the top floor as a second line of defence," Walter stated. "Since Arthur is leading, I'll let him choose the position he wants."  
  
"I think that the third floor will be the best for me," Arthur said. "I'm known in the ministry so people will not find it so suspicious if I turn them away."  
  
"Good point Arthur," Walter said. "I think that's it then. We'll start the mission in exactly 18 hours from now so we'll meet here and take the floo powder directly to the ministry."  
  
"That should be perfect," said Arthur Weasley. "There's a fireplace connected to the floo network on the 6th floor which is right below the floor you'll be on. My team will be able to get into position quickly then."  
  
"All right, that concludes this briefing, you're all dismissed."  
  
As everyone in the room began to get up and leave, Harry turned to face Hermione and he felt Cho put a hand on his shoulder. Hermione was sitting there with a very thoughtful look on her face and Harry felt the urge to ask what was wrong.  
  
"What's wrong Hermione? You look deep in thought," Harry said.  
  
"I'll explain later," Hermione said, getting up from her seat. "You two should follow me."  
  
Harry and Cho nodded and followed Hermione out of the room but Harry threw one final glance in Dumbledore's office before the door closed behind him. He noted that Sepet had gotten up from his seat and was in deep discussion with McGonagall and Walter.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Harry and Cho followed Hermione for a while until they got to an empty classroom.  
  
"So what's on your mind Hermione?" Cho asked before Hermione even closed the door.  
  
"I just thought that it sounds a little strange that Walter should get everyone to go on a mission all at once and he seems to be throwing caution to the wind this time."  
  
"He hasn't misled us yet and he always makes sure that we get out in one piece," Harry tried to reassure her.  
  
"Well, even if that's the case, what about Sepet?" Hermione pointed out. "Why isn't he going on the mission?"  
  
"I'm not entirely sure but do you think it's a setup?" said Cho.  
  
"You mean Sepet gets his bodyguard to go on a mission while he goes around killing everyone in the castle?"  
  
"That doesn't seem likely," Hermione said. "There are too many people and one vampire can't kill everyone at once."  
  
"What about that shield of his?" Harry added in. "A Death Eater couldn't break through it so why would a student's spell break through?"  
  
"We did it," Hermione countered. "We broke through his shield."  
  
"You did?" Cho asked in amazement. "I didn't think that his shield was penetrable."  
  
"Yeah, sometime in early December. No one is completely invincible and I'm sure that he's probably vulnerable a wooden stake or garlic."  
  
"Leave it to you to know all the details."  
  
Hermione threw him a look of irritation but continued on nevertheless. "It would look too suspicious if you two went missing on the mission so I think I'll have to deal with it. I'll try to get Ron to help keep an eye on Sepet too but tonight, I'll have to go find a wooden stake."  
  
"To kill Sepet with?"  
  
"Yes, to kill Sepet with."  
  
"Isn't that dangerous? What if you get hurt? What about Parvati's life?" Harry protested.  
  
"Really Harry. you're starting to sound a little like Ron," Hermione said with a slight smile. "Not that I don't mind your concern but you know that once I've set my mind to something, I'm not going to give it up. Not without a fight anyway."  
  
Harry nodded slowly. "All right, be careful Hermione. Don't be afraid to contact me if you're in trouble using your amulet."  
  
"I think that settles everything," Cho said, quickly ending the conversation. "We should get some sleep because we still have classes tomorrow."  
  
"I agree with that," Hermione said.  
  
With that, the three of them exited the classroom and headed towards the towers. However as luck would have it, they ran into Snape along the way.  
  
"Well. well." Snape said quietly but with enough force to make them stop in their tracks. "Three students out at this hour? Shouldn't you be getting back to your rooms? We need you fully rested tomorrow, especially you Potter. We wouldn't want anything happening to you now, do we?"  
  
"We were heading back just now, Professor," Hermione said, grabbing Cho and Harry by the arm and pulling them in the direction of the dorms.  
  
"Not too fast Miss Granger - not before you let me take off 10 points from both of your houses, now run along," Snape said as he watched them walk quickly back to their towers.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
After dropping Cho off at the Ravenclaw tower and giving her a goodnight hug, Harry went back with Hermione to the Gryffindor tower and entered the common room to find Ron.  
  
"You two certainly have been gone for a long time," Ron said as they came walking into the common room.  
  
"We were held up by Snape," Hermione explained. "He made us clean his office."  
  
Ron looked very frustrated. "Really? That's funny because I saw Snape on the way back from my rounds."  
  
"It's the truth Ron, why won't you believe me?" Hermione protested.  
  
"Maybe because this isn't the first time that you two have been gone for long periods of time," Ron said with jealousy in his voice.  
  
Harry looked at his two friends. "Ron, calm down. Hermione is telling the truth. Snape did make us clean his office. Cho can back us up. She was there."  
  
That statement seemed to make Ron calm down a little but Harry could still see a tinge of jealousy in Ron's eyes. "I'm sorry Hermione."  
  
"Hmph," Hermione grunted in annoyance. "Well I'm off to bed, good night you two."  
  
The two boys watched Hermione walk up to her room and Harry threw Ron a look of irritation. "I'm off to bed as well. Good night Ron."  
  
"Was it something I said?" Ron said with a dumbfounded expression on his face as Harry walked up the stairs to his room.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The next morning, Harry awoke to someone tugging at his sleeve. He slowly opened his eyes to find that Ron was already dressed and that had a look of urgency written upon his face.  
  
"Common Harry, wake up," Ron urged, continuing to tug on his sleeve. "It's almost time for class and we're going to be late for our Dark Arts class. Hurry up and get dressed."  
  
Harry shot out of his bed and ran to his trunk to change out of his pyjamas. "What time is it?"  
  
"We have 5 minutes to get to class," Ron said hurriedly. "Hurry mate."  
  
"Thanks for waking me up," Harry said as he slipped on his pants.  
  
"No problem, just hurry."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
It took another minute or so for Harry to finish getting dressed and get his books and sword. The two boys then ran down the staircase to the common room where Hermione was waiting for them.  
  
"It's about time you got up Harry," Hermione scolded him. "We're going to be late."  
  
"All right, all right," Harry said huffily as the trio ran out of the door. "It's my fault for oversleeping. No need to rub it in."  
  
"Yeah Hermione," Ron agreed as they ran towards the dungeons. "I think Walter will be lenient when we get there."  
  
"Still." Hermione insisted, breathing heavily as the load of books weighed down on her. "We'll get points taken off."  
  
"Don't worry Miss Prefect, you'll probably gain those points back by answering a couple questions in class."  
  
"Oh I see, leave it to me to get you out of the mess that you've both created."  
  
"Enough, let's keep running," Harry interrupted before the argument continued further.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they got to the dungeons for their Dark Arts class, the trio quickly burst through the door but stopped dead in their tracks as soon as they realised who the professor was.  
  
"Good morning, how nice of you three to join us," Sepet's cold voice was heard from beneath his hood covering his face. "Now which one of you three overslept?"  
  
"I did," Harry said, noticing that Malfoy was smirking in the background.  
  
"That will be 15 points for oversleeping and 10 points each for being late - now find your seats and let us continue the lesson."  
  
"What happened to Professor Laikov?" Hermione dared to ask as they found their seats in the back of the room.  
  
"That is none of your concern Miss Granger," Sepet replied. "Now open your books to page 428."  
  
They did as they were told and the lesson continued. Sepet's lecture was regarding minotaurs and demon spawns and how to best defeat one. However, unlike Walter, Sepet told stories in vivid detail about each type of creature. To Harry it was almost as if Sepet was there in person but knowing that vampires could live forever, it didn't come as much of a surprise.  
  
Hermione was taking careful notes but at the same time, Harry noted that she was also writing on a spare piece of parchment and passing it back and forth between herself and Ron. Harry felt a slight pang of jealously but quickly killed it off and looked on in interest.  
  
"Mr. Potter," Sepet called, snapping him out of his trance. "Why don't you enlighten us with your knowledge and tell us why you cannot allow a demon spawn to look you in the eyes."  
  
Harry stared at him dumbfounded. He hadn't read the book ahead of time and so he didn't know what the answer was. "I don't know sir."  
  
Sepet seemed to smirk under the hood but Harry couldn't really tell since it was so dark under it and not even the torches in the room seemed to penetrate the darkness. "I didn't think so. What about you Miss Granger?"  
  
"Because it will send images so horrifying into your mind that it will shred your mind," Hermione answered resolutely.  
  
"Good." Sepet said almost to himself, "That will be ten points from Gryffindor since Mr. Potter did not know the answer and five points to Gryffindor for Miss Granger being able to answer it."  
  
The rest of the lesson continued on in silence but the students, both Slytherins and Gryffindors alike, seemed to enjoy the stories that Sepet told regarding his experiences with these creatures.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
As the students were leaving and gathering their books, Harry noticed that Malfoy and his two goons were coming over to where he was but fortunately, Sepet called Harry aside for a moment.  
  
"Mr, Potter, could I have a word?"  
  
Harry gave Ron and Hermione an uneasy look but walked over to see what Sepet wanted. Malfoy, seeing that his chance to taunt Harry again was taken away, quickly walked out of the room.  
  
"Yes sir?"  
  
"Next time you decide to be late, save yourself the embarrassment and just don't show up to class," Sepet said without a hint of emotion. "However come, I want to teach you something."  
  
"Mr. Weasley and Miss Granger - go ahead without Mr. Potter," Sepet told them.  
  
"I'll wait for him if you don't mind Professor," Ron said after consulting with Hermione.  
  
"Suit yourself but if you do so, take a seat. This will take a while - follow me Mr. Potter," Sepet replied as he led Harry to the centre of the room as Ron took a seat. Hermione, however, left the room; probably to get to Transfiguration which he would be missing since Sepet was delaying him.  
  
"I have already asked Professor McGonagall to detain you here so that I could teach you how to handle your sword better. Now let's get started, draw your sword," Sepet said as he drew his sword from beneath his robe.  
  
Harry did as he was told but when he made to draw his wand as well, Sepet stopped him.  
  
"You won't need your wand this time; I will only concentrate on your sword handing. You will probably need it later," Sepet told him.  
  
Harry gave Sepet a look of confusion but complied nevertheless and gripped his sword with two hands.  
  
"Defend yourself," was all Sepet said before he lunged at Harry with his sword.  
  
Harry deflected the sword and swung low for Sepet's legs but was easily blocked.  
  
"You're swinging too wide, I can see them coming," Sepet instructed and he attacked once again, this time coming from the top left.  
  
Harry made to block it but at the last moment, Sepet changed directions and made a cut low. Harry tried to follow but Sepet was quicker and his sword made a slight cut into Harry's robe.  
  
"Don't try to look, feel," Sepet told him.  
  
Harry tried to do as he was told and made better attempts to try to predict where Sepet's next move was coming from.  
  
"How about we take this up a bit?"  
  
Harry nodded and Sepet's inhuman speed came into play. Sepet charged at Harry and launched a fury of attacks from different directions, all of which Harry managed to block.  
  
However this took a high toll on Harry and eventually Sepet won by dropping to the ground and sweeping Harry's legs out from under him and knocking the sword out of his hands as Harry was falling to the ground.  
  
"Not bad Mr. Potter but you may want to try to use your legs on occasion as well. Now let's try again."  
  
Harry tiredly got up from the ground and picked up his sword and faced Sepet again but he barely had time to bring up his sword to ready position before he found his sword locked with Sepet's.  
  
Harry tried to get them unlocked by swinging down and around but Sepet followed and with his sword on top, Sepet sung downward, forcing Harry to jump backwards.  
  
As he did, Harry brought his sword to ready position and jumped forward, thrusting his sword in Sepet's direction as he did. Sepet easily deflected it to the right and attacked from the right.  
  
Harry did something a little different this time though and as Sepet's sword was coming back, Harry followed it and with his sword still connected to Sepet's, brought his blade around the other side of Sepet's sword while taking a step back to get out of the way.  
  
Sepet's sword hit nothing but air but the force caused Sepet to lose his balance and Harry brought the blade of his sword back and around Sepet's. He then thrust forward but Sepet sensed this and did a similar manoeuvre, bringing his sword around as Harry did earlier to push it out of the way.  
  
"Not bad Mr. Potter - almost had me there but let's stop for now," Sepet said, bringing his sword back into ready position. "I look forward to duelling you again."  
  
The sound of Ron clapping filled the room and both Sepet and Harry sheathed their swords once again.  
  
"Good show mate," Ron called from where he was sitting with a large grin on his face.  
  
"Mr. Weasley," Sepet said now facing Ron. "That will be enough of your comments."  
  
Ron stopped clapping immediately and stopped smiling.  
  
Wiping the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, Harry walked over to where Ron was sitting and grabbed his bag. "Let's go Ron."  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
Classes were somewhat tiring that day since Harry was both anxious and worried to go on his mission. Hermione, noticing his worried expression from time to time would ask if he was all right but he would always give her the same positive reply.  
  
Close to the time Harry was to go on the mission, Harry, Ron and Hermione were sitting in the library when Cho walked in to get him.  
  
"Let's go Harry," Cho said, taking him by the arm.  
  
Ron sniggered when he saw what he saw. "Don't go snogging for too long."  
  
Cho and Harry blushed but Hermione whacked Ron on the arm to get him to be quiet. Hermione then stood up and gave Harry a tight hug much to Ron's dismay.  
  
"Be careful and good luck," she whispered in his ear. "Ron and I will make sure Sepet doesn't do anything while you're gone."  
  
"Thanks," he whispered back as she pulled out of the hug. "Good luck to you too."  
  
Cho then took Harry by the arm and the two of them walked out of the library.  
  
"She cares a lot for you," Cho commented as they walked out of the library. "I can see why Rita Skeeter thought you two were together."  
  
"She's my best friend," Harry said, glancing back into the library one last time as they walked along. "I can imagine why anyone would make that mistake."  
  
"Yes but the reality is that she's with Ron," Cho said; almost as if to reassure herself.  
  
"Those two argue all day, it's a wonder they don't just get married right now," Harry said aloud but to himself, he thought the notion of Hermione and Ron getting married sounded very strange.  
  
Cho laughed. "I guess they just enjoy showing their affection in that manner."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
By the time Harry and Cho arrived at Dumbledore's office, everyone from his team was already gathered and Sirius greeted Harry enthusiastically.  
  
"Harry! How are you doing?" Sirius said as he entered the room.  
  
"I'm doing great and yourself?"  
  
"Just great too - the other team already went ahead of us - we're just waiting for Walter," Sirius told him.  
  
"I haven't seen him all day," Cho said. "Professor Sepet was teaching the Dark Arts class today which was out of the ordinary."  
  
"Yes it was and he didn't tell us where Walter was either," Harry added.  
  
"Walter should be coming in a bit," said Mundungus Fletcher who was sitting in a purple robe next to the fireplace. "He said that he wanted to grab a few of his skeletons along the way."  
  
Sirius nodded and walked towards the fireplace. He took a large pouch sitting on the mantle and opened it.  
  
"There's enough floo powder for a round trip," Sirius said looking into the pouch.  
  
"For one or two groups?" asked Arabella Figg.  
  
"Looks like one," Sirius replied. "Did Arthur bring another pouch with him?"  
  
"Not that I know of," said Arabella.  
  
"So why did he leave already?" Sirius said with a hint of urgency in his voice. "We need to get another pouch to him otherwise he won't be able to retreat."  
  
"We can't leave without Walter," Mundungus Fletcher protested.  
  
"But what if he's been overrun by the ministry guards?"  
  
"I doubt that," Arabella said in an attempt to calm Sirius' worries. "Arthur is well known in the ministry and they don't know that he's in the Order. Besides, I think he and the Weasley family have the sense not to go attacking people in the ministry. Their objective wasn't to seize their floor but to only watch for any suspicious people."  
  
"I hope that you're right," Sirius said.  
  
At that moment, the door opened and Walter entered the room with four skeletons.  
  
"Sorry I'm late," Walter apologized, "I was trying to find a few skeletons but they were patrolling in odd places."  
  
"I'm surprised you didn't just call them over," Sirius said with a look of confusion.  
  
"I guess I could but I thought it was best if I went to look for the best ones," Walter replied, "At any rate, let's get going."  
  
"Just say Ministry of Magic to get there," Walter said as he walked over to the fireplace and grabbed a pinch of floo powder from the bag that Sirius was holding.  
  
"Wait," Sirius told him, holding an arm out to stop Walter, "We need another bag of floo powder for Arthur to get back."  
  
Walter merely smiled and pointed to a pouch attached to his belt. "I always prepare for the worst."  
  
"You would make a good Auror Mr. Laikov," Moody growled as he made his way over to the fireplace. "Pity that you just don't come work for us."  
  
"Alas I have my duties," Walter said and with that, he threw the floo powder into the fireplace.  
  
"MINISTRY OF MAGIC!" Walter yelled and with the skeletons behind him, he disappeared into the fireplace.  
  
"Next will be the students," Moody said. "They will have the best chance. Come, wands out."  
  
Cho, Blaise and Harry drew their wands and walked over to the fireplace. Blaise went first and with a poof of smoke, she disappeared into the fireplace.  
  
Cho grabbed a pinch of floo powder from the pouch that Sirius was holding and stood before the fireplace.  
  
"See you on the other side Harry," Cho said with a smile.  
  
"MINISTRY OF MAGIC!" Cho shouted and she too disappeared into the fireplace.  
  
Finally it was Harry's turn.  
  
"Good luck Harry," said Sirius as Harry took a pinch of floo powder from the pouch.  
  
Harry nodded and grinned. "Thanks Sirius. See you there."  
  
Harry then stood to face the fireplace and threw in the floo powder.  
  
"MINISTRY OF MAGIC!" he yelled and stepped in.  
  
Harry was sucked into the fireplace as if he were in a drain and things around him spun really quickly. Fireplaces whizzed by quickly as Harry travelled through the floo network and he could catch glimpses of what was on the other side. However he eventually came to what he thought was the right one and exited through the fireplace.  
  
He was thrown out of the fireplace and landed with a thud.  
  
"Hi Harry," Cho said as she held out a hand to help him up.  
  
"Thank you," Harry said as he took her hand and stood up.  
  
This gave Harry the first opportunity he had to look around. The room was somewhat large and the walls appeared to be made out of white marble. The floor had a chequered black and white tile pattern and there were wooden double doors across from the fireplace with a suit of armour on either side of it. It was almost as if Harry was in a ballroom; there was even a piano off to one corner and some comfortable chairs and a tea table surrounding the fireplace.  
  
Walter was standing next to the double doors with his four skeletons on either side of it and Blaise was sitting in one of the chairs fiddling with her wand.  
  
Harry heard several more pops come from the fireplace and Sirius, Mundungus Fletcher, Arabella, and Moody appeared one by one.  
  
"Walter, what floor are we on?" Moody growled as he walked towards the double doors.  
  
"I think we are on the same floor that Arthur is on," Walter replied, opening the double doors up a bit so that he could take a look outside.  
  
"Yeah, we are," Walter confirmed a moment later and pulled on the door handles.  
  
The doors swung open inward and Walter walked outside, signally for everyone to follow. "Come on, the coast is clear. Most people have gone home it seems and are probably on the lower floors."  
  
They all made their way outside and Harry took a good look around. There was a staircase leading up to next floor and another leading down next to each other in the middle of the floor.  
  
"Walter," they heard Arthur call from a darkened corner off to their right.  
  
Walter looked in his direction and nodded. "You have this floor secure, we'll head up."  
  
"All right."  
  
They headed upstairs and Harry saw that the floor arrangement was identical to the floor he was just on except that there wasn't another stair case leading up.  
  
"Fudge's office is straight ahead," Walter said facing Harry as he pointed to the double doors across from the staircase.  
  
The floor had four rooms, each with a double door and four guard towers. However Harry noticed that no one was around.  
  
"Where is everyone?" Cho asked, apparently noticing the same thing.  
  
"I'm not sure," Sirius replied, looking around as well with his wand drawn.  
  
"Doesn't matter," Arabella said, climbing ahead of them and opening the double doors. "The fewer people around, the less likely we'll be caught."  
  
Upon opening the doors, Harry got a glimpse of what was inside. The floor was made of the same black and white tile that he had seen in the room on the floor below and the walls were lined with bookshelves filled with hundreds of books. There seemed to be an absence of furniture for only a desk surrounded by chairs was the only things in view.  
  
A short wizard in a purple striped suit was sitting in the chair behind the desk and a bowler hat was resting on the desk along with a wand. However immediately behind him were two dementors with their hoods up guarding the ministry of magic vigilantly.  
  
Upon seeing the doors open revealing the group of Order members, Fudge immediately stood up in shock.  
  
"What is the meaning of this?" he demanded, looking at each person but his gaze settled on Harry. "Mr. Potter, what are you doing this far away from Hogwarts?"  
  
"Quite simple," Walter said sharply. "You will write an order releasing Headmaster Dumbledore from prison and hand it to us."  
  
Fudge laughed. "Have you lost your mind? Do you really expect to force me to do that? Albus is guilty and you know it. The rest of you will be next, I will personally see to that now."  
  
"You are hopelessly outnumbered," Walter said, trying to reason with him. "Surrender now while you still can."  
  
"I will not," Fudge said stubbornly then he turned to his two dementors. "Deal with them."  
  
The two dementors started walking forward but Sirius and Moody cast patronus charms to drive them away but since the dementors had nowhere to run to, they wailed aloud as if in pain and disintegrated into thin air, leaving only empty cloaks where they were standing.  
  
Walter grinned and approached Fudge. "Everyone but the students please wait outside, this won't take long - make sure no one comes up."  
  
"Are you sure?" Sirius said.  
  
Walter nodded and Arabella, Sirius, Mundungus Fletcher and Moody took their places outside.  
  
"Would you be so kind, Miss Zabini, as to close the door," Walter told Blaise.  
  
She did as she was told and then turned her attention back to Fudge as did Harry and Cho.  
  
Fudge was eyed his wand but was careful not to take one eye off Walter.  
  
"Be careful, Mr. Laikov," Fudge said as he slowly walked around to the front of the desk. "You are treading on dangerous ground. All I need to do is call out and hundreds on ministry guards will be here to defend me."  
  
"It is you who is in danger, minister," Walter said with disdain. "Your ministry guards are non-existent and you have no one to defend you."  
  
From his previous encounters with Fudge, Harry would never expect him to act in any manner but what was in his best interest; however what Fudge did in the next minute would surprise Harry and everyone else in the room.  
  
Fudge suddenly went for the wand on his desk and Walter immediately ran towards him.  
  
"GET DOWN!" Walter yelled as he ran towards Fudge.  
  
Fudge turned around and fired a stunning spell at Walter but Walter dove to the ground as did Harry and the rest of the students.  
  
"Professor!" Cho exclaimed, pulling out her wand.  
  
Fudge fired several more stunning spells at Walter who was now on the ground but each one missed as Walter rolled along the ground to avoid getting stunned.  
  
Harry also pulled out his wand but by the time that he had it pointed in Fudge's direction, Walter had already reached him and had stood up again.  
  
Fudge pointed the wand at Walter but Walter brushed it aside with his hand and it fired, sending a stray shot into the bookshelf. Walter then punched Fudge in the stomach and twisted Fudge's wrist around and pulled the wand from his grasp.  
  
Fudge screamed in rage as the wand was taken from him. Walter spun around, out of range so that the wand was now pointed at Fudge.  
  
"Harry," Walter ordered, "Tie the minister up until he wishes to cooperate. That should give him time to cool down."  
  
Harry nodded and with his wand still drawn, walked over to Fudge.  
  
"Potter," Fudge said with rage still in his eyes. "You've betrayed us all."  
  
Harry merely shook his head and conjured ropes, binding the minister tightly.  
  
Cho came up behind Harry and looked at Fudge. "He doesn't know what he's doing."  
  
"Yes, it's a pity that he strongly believes that You-Know-Who hasn't come back," Harry agreed.  
  
Some yelling and a few thuds were heard from the floor below, causing Harry and Cho to jump.  
  
"What's going on?" Blaise asked in alarm, drawing her wand.  
  
"I don't know - everyone to the door," Walter instructed them, heading over as well, forming a bone spear in his hands as he went along. "Check outside."  
  
They ran towards the door and were about to open it but Sirius burst through. The other Order members were near the stairway and firing downward but from Harry's vantage point, he could not see what was going on.  
  
"WALTER!" Sirius yelled in anger, pointing his wand at him. "WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS!? YOU BETRAYED US ALL!"  
  
Walter didn't respond but ran at Sirius and with the point of his spear, cut into Sirius' hand before he could fire anything. Sirius' wand dropped to the ground and Walter brought the blunt end of the spear around, knocking Sirius out with one swift motion.  
  
Harry, Cho, and Blaise stood there dumbfounded.  
  
"W - why?" Cho asked.  
  
"It's over," Blaise said, pointing to the staircase.  
  
Groups of skeletons armed with swords, spears and shields had emerged from the rooms and surrounded the Order members. Moody, Mundungus, and Arabella were at the staircase firing away at the skeletons but the skeletons were advancing with their shields in front so the spells merely bounced off them and went in different directions.  
  
Skeletons emerged from the floor below as well and charged at the three Order members at the staircase, ramming their shields into them and knocking all three out.  
  
Harry reached for his sword but Walter shook his head.  
  
"Don't," he told him with his spear pointed in his direction.  
  
In an act of bravery, Blaise quickly raised her wand and fired a stunning bolt at Walter. However he spun out of the way and Blaise was immediately overpowered by skeletons.  
  
Harry and Cho were the only ones standing now but now that the other Order members had been captured, they were completely surrounded by Walter and his skeletons.  
  
"Should we try to fight?" Cho whispered to him as she put her back to his.  
  
"We don't have much of a choice," Harry said, getting ready to draw his sword.  
  
"I'm warning you Mr. Potter," Walter said. "Don't - my orders were quite clear to bring you in alive and I do not wish to kill you."  
  
"But why?" Harry asked. "Why betray the Order now?"  
  
Walter's mouth twisted into a smile. "Because I was ordered to. How else did you think you were able to survive?"  
  
"Is that all? You were ordered to? So if Sepet told you to kill yourself, you'd do it?" Harry said defiantly.  
  
"I wouldn't go that far but you'd probably be pretty close," Walter said with a grin. "Now enough talk, it took me 24 hours to get all of these skeletons here so that you could be captured. Now I will carry out my mission and bring you to Voldemort."  
  
Fudge was staring at Walter in fear from where he was tied up.  
  
"You-Know-Who is dead, it's only you who believes that he is back," Fudge said.  
  
Walter laughed as he made his way over to where Fudge was and pulled out his dagger. "Your beliefs will get you into trouble someday but for now, just be happy that you're alive Minister."  
  
With that, Walter cut the ropes binding Fudge and helped him up. "Now the traitors have been rounded up and you're safe."  
  
"You're a death eater," Fudge stated in shock. "Your master is dead but why - "  
  
"Brilliant deduction Minister," Walter said with a hint of sarcasm. "We'll benefit by getting our revenge and you'll get what you want; your traitors removed from society. Now if you don't' mind, I'll be leaving with my prisoners."  
  
Then Walter turned to his skeletons and gave one order. "Take them."  
  
Seeing that they were going to be taken prisoner, Harry and Cho drew their weapons to defend themselves as the skeletons attacked. Harry fired an ice bolt at the nearest skeleton which froze it despite the shield and with one swift stroke, shattered it to pieces. However Cho was not as lucky for she was quickly overpowered and knocked unconscious by the skeletons.  
  
Harry turned around in time to see Cho fall to the ground but when he turned around to see if she was all right but when he did so, something hit him hard in the back of the head.  
  
Harry's vision blurred and he dropped both his sword and wand. He felt both of his legs go out from underneath him and he collapsed to the cold tile floor. The last thing he was able to make out before he went unconscious completely was Walter glancing down at his body and grinning triumphantly.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A/N: Well, talk about taking way too long. This chap took way to long to get up so I apologize for the delay. However I would like to thank Quis for getting me out of my writer's block and for discussing random topics with me. Also, Luke-6622427 suggested a mailing list to tell people when my updates are up. If you want to be on the mailing list, post a review with your e-mail address. Ok, now on to the replies:  
  
Sew2100: Thank you for the review. I'm glad that people appreciate my work.  
  
MaxLoneWolf: Hehe, you might be right in the long run or you might not be. As for contacting me, feel free to do so anytime you wish.  
  
Katy999: Eh, yeah. it was because you read the story the day before. this one took too long. Then again, in between school work and writer's block I guess it's not that bad.  
  
Phoenix of Light: Hope you found this chapter as exciting as the previous ones.  
  
Anir: Your thinking is similar to MaxLoneWolf's. Of course, whether or not you're right or not. you'll have to keep reading to find out.  
  
steviej1026: Unfortunately, I don't know if NAPPA will update his fic or not anytime soon.  
  
Erunantala: I apologize for taking so long. However, I hope that the wait was worth it. I'm not exactly sure what people think of the missions but I've been trying to come up with unique ideas each time. As for my writing style. I didn't think it was quite unorthodox... In fact, I think it still needs a bit of work.  
  
wiske-ir: Wow, that makes it about 10 people who've said that. Is the style of writing/plot that close to Rowling's? I didn't think it was. As for the book of elements. since you gave me a signed review. Go ahead and use it, I don't mind because I can't say it's entirely original for me to use the elements book. I only came up with the incantations.  
  
JoshWhitt: Haha, tons and tons of bloodshed? Yeah, I think this fic is a little bloody for a HP fanfic. I dunno if I overdid it or not. Hopefully now that Draco is out of the order, you'll feel a little happier. As for Harry teaching Cho the elemental spells.. That's not a bad idea but only if the plot allows for it, in this book anyway.  
  
The-Dude: Thanks for the review. Once spring break starts next week, I hope to update quicker than this time.  
  
Sunny: I hope that your opinion of Walter doesn't drop but he is still a cool character even though he betrayed everyone. The book of elements was something that I thought would be a little interesting, however I think that it sorta turned Harry into a James Bond because there seems to be a spell for each trouble spot he gets into just as James Bond has a gadget for each problem that arises. Oh well, that has all changed with this chapter.  
  
luke-6622427: No need to kill yourself by losing sleep over my fic. It'll always be here as long as the site is up and even if the site went down, I can always post it elsewhere. As for a mailing list, that's not a bad idea, I probably should create one.  
  
Sailor Miaka: Thank you for reviewing. Hope you enjoyed this chapter just as much as the previous ones. 


	33. Chapter 31: Order 05: Escape

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling.  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 31: Order 05: Escape  
  
In a cold dark room, three hooded figures stood before a thin man with a deathly white face and slits for nostrils; the very definition of a human serpent. Wormtail was also cowering behind Voldemort, watching his lord with a fearful eye and two dementors were also positioned at the entrance to the chamber.  
  
The door opened and a fourth man entered escorted by two more hooded figures, each one carrying a sword underneath his cloak.  
  
All three newcomers bowed before Voldemort and waited until he acknowledged their presence.  
  
"What is it Lucius?" Voldemort hissed. "I hope that the news is good this time. I failed to understand how you could possibly let one of our own, Avery get captured and remain that way. "  
  
"My lord," Lucius replied. "We have captured Potter and the rest of the members of Dumbledore's silly Order."  
  
"You two may leave now, go forth and secure our future," Voldemort said to the two hooded figures escorting Lucius.  
  
Both silently got up and left the room, leaving Lucius alone with the three Death Eaters and Voldemort.  
  
"Now tell me Lucius, how is it that you managed to do something right for once?"  
  
"Severus introduced me to someone who was part of Dumbledore's order who he thought might be useful to our cause. I've met him personally and he certainly has a flair for brutality and efficiency."  
  
"Are the prisoners being guarded?"  
  
"Yes my lord," Lucius said, not daring to look up. "We've taken away their wands and other weapons so they are all defenceless."  
  
"Who did you leave in charge?"  
  
"In charge my lord?" Lucius asked, looking up slightly in confusion.  
  
"You mean to tell me that you did not leave anyone in charge of the guards?" Voldemort said as he slowly approached Lucius.  
  
"No my lord, I assumed that - " Lucius started to say but he didn't have the chance to finish for Voldemort raised his wand and used the Cruciatus curse on Lucius.  
  
"AHHHHHHHHH!!" Lucius screamed as he collapsed to the ground in pain.  
  
Eventually Voldemort released Lucius from his torture and walked back to where Wormtail was cowering. Lucius was on the ground, still cringing in pain and much too exhausted to get up.  
  
Voldemort turned to two of the three Death Eaters surrounding him. "Vidar and Helga Lestrange, go quickly to Lucius' house and make sure that the prisoners do not escape, bring the other two loyal servants with you if you can catch up with them. However it is my impression that they will be saddened to find that one of their number is missing and delay if they escape at all."  
  
Two of the three Death Eaters standing before Voldemort bowed and left the room.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Harry awoke with his scar burning to find himself in a cell in a cold, dark dungeon. There were two Death Eaters standing at the doorway, one of them probably had the keys but seeing as the cell was quite a way from the door, getting the keys seemed out of the question. There was also a table with various wands and weapons placed on them sitting up against the wall to the right of the two Death Eaters.  
  
His head was still throbbing from having been knocked on the head however, after his dream, his primary worry was that of Cho since Voldemort mentioned that one of the Order members were missing.  
  
"Cho," Harry called out softly. "Cho, where are you?"  
  
A calming yet familiar hand was placed upon Harry's shoulder and upon turning around, Harry found himself face to face with the headmaster of Hogwarts.  
  
"Professor Dumbledore!" Harry exclaimed in happiness. "You're here too."  
  
The headmaster's eyes twinkled behind his glasses as the old man's mouth turned up into a smile. "Yes Harry, I am here. From your calls, I can only imaging that you are looking for Miss Chang. She is here as well, but if you take a good look around you will find that most people are asleep."  
  
"You had quite a knock on the head there," Dumbledore continued as he examined the back of Harry's head, checking for further injury.  
  
"Is everyone here?"  
  
"Alas no, they took Percy Weasley away earlier and I haven't seen him since," Dumbledore informed him. "Everyone else here is untouched and still alive - I've checked them all myself."  
  
Harry was a disturbed at how accurate his dream was but the next thing that came to his mind were the two Death Eaters that were on the way. When he was in the graveyard near the end of the Triwizard Tournament at Hogwarts last year, he remembered that Voldemort mentioned the name Lestrange. If memory also served him well, the Lestranges were the couple that were responsible for Neville's parents going insane.  
  
"Who are the Lestranges?" Harry asked the headmaster.  
  
Dumbledore regarded Harry for a moment before replying. "They are two of the most dangerous Death Eaters in Voldemort's service. We had sent them to Azkaban but now that Voldemort has made that his headquarters, we can safely assume that they are free and that we will be seeing more of them. They are also responsible for the insanity of Neville Longbottom's parents."  
  
"They're on the way," Harry stated.  
  
"In that case," Dumbledore said slowly, "we had better find a way to escape quickly. If the Lestranges are on their way, I assume that they will torture us to the point where we will be driven insane like the Longbottoms."  
  
"How do we get out when we're in here?"  
  
"I trust that Minerva had a backup plan just in case something like this happened," Dumbledore said calmly.  
  
Dumbledore got up silently and walked around the cell waking everyone up.  
  
Harry got up and followed Dumbledore, waking everyone up. However when he got to Cho, he kneeled down beside her and watched as she slept.  
  
She looked very peaceful and none of her beauty had seemed to diminish during the time they had spent in the cell though one day hardly constituted as much, Harry thought.  
  
"Cho," he finally said, nudging her gently. "Cho, wake up."  
  
"Mmm?" she responded sleepily but she didn't wake up.  
  
"Cho, it's time to get up," Harry said, nudging her yet again.  
  
"J-ust a little - more..." Cho said as she brushed his hand away.  
  
"Cho, this isn't the time to be sleeping, the Death Eaters are on the way," Harry said, trying to reason with her.  
  
Cho didn't respond this time so Harry thought it was useless to try to reason with someone who was half asleep but time was of the essence since, with the two loyal Death Eaters on the way, their time to escape was slowly dwindling.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The door to the dungeon opened and Harry thought that their time was up but upon seeing who was entering, he noticed that it was none other than Snape with his wand drawn.  
  
The two Death Eaters at the door looked at him but suddenly found themselves on the floor, stunned.  
  
"Albus," Snape said with some minor hint of emotion that Harry thought resembled happiness but that was quickly suppressed if it was there at all. "It's good to see that you're safe and that everyone else is here as well. Minerva also allowed these two also insisted on coming along despite my protests."  
  
Snape stepped aside to reveal two students in Hogwarts uniforms. One was a girl with bushy brown hair and the other was a boy with fiery red hair that was an indication that he was a Weasley.  
  
"HARRY!" Hermione and Ron exclaimed, happy to see their friend alive.  
  
Harry couldn't help but grin at them. "Ron - Hermione, how did you manage to find us?"  
  
"Come now Harry, you expect me not to worry about you when you haven't come back in 24 hours?" Hermione said with a look of relief. "I'm just happy that you're safe."  
  
"She's right mate," Ron agreed. "The Daily Prophet said that the Phoenix Order was captured by Fudge and Hermione nearly went hysterical. She kept saying that you were in trouble and after calming her down; she finally told me that you two were part of it. Now I know why you two have been gone for long periods of time - I must say though that you should have said something."  
  
"It's good to see you again Severus," Dumbledore said, standing up slowly. "They took Percy away but I must say that your timing couldn't be better. My old legs were starting to ache from sitting in this cell for months."  
  
The entire Weasley family looked saddened by the news that Percy was gone but they still trusted Dumbledore so they listened intently for any instructions on how to go about their escape first.  
  
"I'm sorry that I couldn't come sooner but they would suspect something. The Daily Prophet article told me that everyone had been captured with the help of an unorthodox wizard who I assume to be that necromancer. I knew that both of them were trouble when I saw them," Snape said disgustedly as he went over to take the keys from one of the Death Eaters and opened the cell.  
  
Snape handed the keys to Dumbledore and pointed to the table with all of the wands on it. "Your wands are over there but you'll have to stun me so they won't suspect that I let you out but first.."  
  
Snape then drew out a large pouch from his robe. ".This is a bag of floo powder. It should be enough to take everyone back to Hogwarts. The fireplace leading to the floo network is on the floor above. You'll have to go to the front of the Malfoy's mansion and once you reach the entrance, head to the room on the immediate left under the stairway, you'll find the fireplace in there. However to get to the entrance, you'll have to first go through a circular room which has three doors which open to a different location every 15 minutes so I can't help you there."  
  
Dumbledore nodded and took both the bag and Snape's wand from him. "Sorry about this Severus - STUPEFY!"  
  
The stunning bolt hit Snape and he immediately fell to the ground, unconscious. Dumbledore placed the wand next to Snape and turned to Harry.  
  
"Would you do us the honours of creating some food for us so that the Death Eaters will only think that Snape was trying to give us food?"  
  
Harry was a little surprised that Dumbledore even knew of his elemental magic but seeing as Dumbledore had known about his adventures with Ron and Hermione in the past, he must assume that Dumbledore somehow knew about this as well.  
  
Harry nodded and walked to the table to grab his wand and sword while Sirius and Remus grabbed the remaining wands and handed them out to their respective owners but since Cho was still asleep, Harry also retained her wand.  
  
After fastening the sword around his belt, Harry walked into the cell and pointed his wand at the ground near Snape.  
  
"cibus bread," Harry said and a piece of bread was created in the middle of the floor much to everyone's surprise.  
  
"There is one more thing we need to do," Dumbledore said, taking his wand from the table. "We must wipe the memories of the two guards."  
  
With that, Dumbledore walked over to the two unconscious Death Eaters and used a memory charm on both of them to wipe any memory of what had happened. Then he opened the door and led the way, exiting to the left.  
  
As everyone followed, Harry carefully picked up Cho's body and followed them out with Hermione and Ron behind him, their wands drawn and ready.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
They found themselves in a long corridor lit by torches and lined with doors on both sides.  
  
"Which way Albus?" Moody growled.  
  
Dumbledore put a hand to his beard and stroked it for a bit in thought. After a while, his face lit up and he lifted a finger in the other direction.  
  
"That way I believe, lead the way Harry," Dumbledore said.  
  
"Let me carry her," Sirius told Harry who was carrying Cho. "Then you can lead."  
  
Harry transferred Cho to Sirius and that freed up both of his hands to draw his wand and his sword.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
As they walked along the corridor, Hermione started telling Harry all that happened while he was gone.  
  
"Sepet was acting strangely again when you left," Hermione said, "but he didn't hurt anyone which was good. Also, I never took off your ring, do you want it back?"  
  
"No, that's ok," Harry said. "I don't think it would help much anyway."  
  
"It works Harry, we just need to figure out who it is warning us against," Hermione told him. "During one of my rounds at night, I heard some strange noises coming from the dungeons so I went down there to check it out with Ron. The noises appeared to be coming from Walter's office and we went to see if he was in there."  
  
"We didn't find anything but a giant bat followed by lots of smaller bats flew out of the room when we opened the door," Ron explained.  
  
Harry stopped dead in his tracks when he heard the words 'giant bat' and everyone else also stopped behind him.  
  
"A what?" he asked.  
  
"A giant bat and lots of little bats," Ron repeated. "Isn't that -"  
  
Hermione quickly put a hand over his mouth and gave Harry a look of understanding. "We'll discuss this with you later Ron - we need to get out of here first."  
  
"All right," Ron said as they continued walking.  
  
"Was something wrong Harry?" asked Terry Boot as he ran up to the front of the group. "You stopped for a moment."  
  
"Nothing, let's get out of here as fast as we can," Harry said, quickening his pace a little.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
They continued along their way unhindered by any guards until they got to a stairway leading up.  
  
There was a door that probably led to either another hallway or another room but it was guarded by two of Walter's skeletons. Harry's ring on Hermione's finger was glowing faintly to show that danger was near.  
  
"Hermione," Harry said. "You and I will fire ice bolts at each of the skeletons and you, Terry, will attack them."  
  
"Sure thing Harry," Terry Boot acknowledged as he drew his sword.  
  
"Ready?"  
  
"Ready."  
  
Both Harry and Hermione fired an ice bolt at each of the skeletons freezing them solid. Then Terry and Harry ran up the stairs to smash both of the skeletons with one blow from their swords.  
  
"Good job Harry," Remus Lupin said as he walked ahead of Sirius and opened the door carefully so that he could take a look around.  
  
"There doesn't seem to be anyone around," Remus announced opening the door. "Go ahead Harry."  
  
Harry ran out first followed by Hermione and Ron only to find themselves in a large circular room.  
  
As the other members exited the dungeons, Harry slowly looked around and realized that the dungeon entrance was nothing more than a door disguised as a wall. There were large pillars that held up a walkway on the 2nd floor above them and a large green carpet on the floor that bore the family crest of the Malfoys. Finally, the three doors which Snape had told them about earlier were arrayed around the room, one on the right, one to the left and one directly in front of Harry.  
  
"Quickly," Dumbledore said as he exited the dungeons. "Open up all the doors, if they lead to the entrance then we can escape but otherwise we'll just remain in here until they change to the door we want."  
  
Remus, Dumbledore and Bill Weasley ran to each of the doors and opened them. None of them appeared to be the correct one so the Order members deployed in even numbers at the doors so that no one could enter and so that they could watch for the correct exit.  
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione joined Bill Weasley at his door along with Moody and Molly.  
  
"Are you all right dears?" Molly Weasley asked, looking them over with a critical eye.  
  
"Yes Mrs. Weasley," Harry replied. "We're perfectly fine."  
  
"This place must get frustrating," Ron commented. "What happens if we never get the right one?"  
  
"Then we're stuck here forever or we'll have to just try finding our way through," Bill Weasley said.  
  
"Great.."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
An hour or so passed in waiting when Remus Lupin suddenly jumped up in excitement. "It's here - the front entrance of the Malfoy mansion! Quickly everyone we have 15 minutes to get out."  
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione got up and ran as quickly as they could to where Remus and his group were while Dumbledore's group likewise followed.  
  
"Harry!" Cho, who had now woken up, exclaimed as she ran headlong into Harry and enveloped him in a tight hug.  
  
Harry smiled at her. "Good to see you awake Cho, how did you sleep?"  
  
"I slept well, thanks to your godfather for carrying me up," Cho replied as she pulled away.  
  
"Enough you two," Hermione scolded. "You can do that when you get back - we need to get out now."  
  
Both Harry and Cho blushed in embarrassment but followed Hermione and Ron through the exit.  
  
Once everyone had gone through the doorway, Harry looked back to find that the room was not what they had been in previously. Instead there was only an open doorway leading to another unfamiliar room.  
  
However their troubles were far from over for they were confronted by four hooded Death Eaters, one with a sword and a wand, another with only a sword, and two Death Eaters with only wands.  
  
"It's about time you showed yourselves," said one of the Death Eaters in a scratchy voice. "Pity you all won't be able to make it back to Hogwarts. My wife and I will show you the same hospitality that you had shown us in Azkaban."  
  
Within two seconds, every order member had their wand pointed at the Lestranges but the two sword wielding Death Eaters stood silent.  
  
"Harry, the adults will deal with the Lestranges," Dumbledore said. "The rest of you, deal with the other two Death Eaters."  
  
Harry nodded and signalled to everyone else. Justin drew his sword and all the females drew their daggers.  
  
The Lestranges made the first move, firing a Cruciatus curse at Sirius and Remus but they quickly dodged out of the way and returned fire with a disarming spell. The other adults spread out so that they could fire and the chances of getting hit were reduced.  
  
Meanwhile, the other two Death Eaters drew their swords and charged at the students.  
  
"Everyone fire a spell at them," Harry commanded.  
  
The students complied and each person fired a disarming spell at them but both Death Eaters dropped to the floor and rolled aside before getting up and continuing.  
  
Harry fired an ice bolt at the nearest Death Eater with both a wand and sword but missed and the Death Eater returned fire with the Imperius curse.  
  
Harry found himself hit with it and he could not move.  
  
The Death Eater who cast it stopped and held his position.  
  
"Good," he said in a muffled voice. "Now turn around and attack your classmates."  
  
"No," Harry said in defiance.  
  
"I said attack them," the Death Eater said more forcefully.  
  
Harry found himself turning slowly but in his mind he forced himself to resist the spell.  
  
*I will not attack them, I will not attack them * he thought.  
  
"Harry, what are you doing?" Hermione said.  
  
"I - I'm not in control of myself," Harry replied.  
  
"Good, good my puppet," the Death Eater said maliciously. "Kill them and then come before the dark lord and receive your punishment."  
  
Harry had almost turned around and the other Death Eater had now engaged Terry and Justin.  
  
Hermione, seeing that Harry might not be able to break out of the spell, fired blinding spells at the Death Eater while Ron approached Harry slowly.  
  
"Harry, common mate, resist it," Ron encouraged him. "We've see you do it last year."  
  
"Yes Harry," Cho said, approaching him as well. "Resist it."  
  
"Why don't you kill the girl?" the Death Eater told him. "Yes, that's a good idea."  
  
Hermione, in frustration, fired a disarming spell and the Death Eater's wand flew to her, releasing Harry from the Imperius curse.  
  
The wand fell at Hermione's feet and angered, the Death Eater attacked her with his sword but she managed to block it with her dagger.  
  
Harry attacked the Death Eater who again dropped to the ground, grabbed his wand and rolled out of the way.  
  
At the same time, the Lestranges weren't doing much to the adults since they had been pushed back into the room basically and were firing through cracks in the doorway.  
  
"Pull back," Mrs. Lestrange told the two other Death Eaters.  
  
The one with the wand complied and pulled back to the doorway while the Lestranges provided cover. However the other one was stubborn and continued to engage Justin and Terry with his sword.  
  
Seeing this, Harry ran in their direction, jumping to avoid a Cruciatus curse aimed at his legs. He fired an ice bolt at the Death Eater but the Death Eater stepped aside at the last minute to avoid it.  
  
The Death Eater was currently attacking Justin while Terry had pulled back to rest a bit but the battle was short since Justin was injured within a few seconds for the Death Eater feinted high and changed the direction of his sword at the last minute, cutting into Justin's leg, splashing blood onto the floor.  
  
Justin dropped his sword and screamed in pain as he fell to the ground, clutching his leg with both hands.  
  
Terry quickly took over and attacked the Death Eater but the Death Eater was surprisingly quick. Hannah Abbot ran over to Justin and dragged him away from the battle while Blaise grabbed Justin's sword.  
  
As the duel with Terry continued, the Death Eater allowed himself to be pushed back into a wall by Terry but he did something that neither Harry nor Terry expected. The Death Eater jumped backwards, rebounded off the wall and landed behind Terry while spinning in a complete circle, cutting into both of Terry's legs deeply and splattering blood onto the floor and the wall. He then brought his sword up in time to deflect the blow that Harry aimed at his head.  
  
Terry also collapsed in pain and Ron and Hermione went to his aid, dragging his body away from the battle, leaving a trail of blood as they did so.  
  
"Common," Mr. Lestrange ordered the sword wielding Death Eater. "This is no time to be playing around. We can't defeat them all - retreat."  
  
After trading a few more blows with Harry, the other Death Eater grudgingly complied.  
  
"I'll see you again Mr. Potter," he hissed as he ran towards the door where the Lestranges were.  
  
Dumbledore, seeing that they were wasting time, fired one last spell at the Lestranges who shut the doors just as the Death Eater with the sword entered the room but unlike the previous spells, it blew the double doors to bits, creating a large cloud of dust and smoke.  
  
The Lestranges and the other two Death Eaters were blown back and were covered with wooden particles but they quickly got up and ran towards the fireplace. Mr. Lestrange threw some floo powder into the fireplace and all four of them disappeared into it.  
  
Now that the battle was over, Harry sheathed his sword and looked around. Hermione was tending to Terry's injuries, using the healing spell from the elemental book while Dumbledore was doing something similar with Justin.  
  
"Good job Harry," Sirius said, "You did well against both Death Eaters."  
  
"Thanks," Harry replied and turned to Dumbledore who was now finished tending to Justin and helping him up.  
  
"I think that does it," Dumbledore said, looking to see if Hermione was done healing Terry. "However we're not out of danger just yet, quickly everyone; to the fireplace."  
  
Everyone ran towards the fireplace and Dumbledore took out the pouch of floo powder.  
  
"We'll start with the students and then everyone else will follow," Dumbledore said. "You first Mr. Weasley just say 'Hogwarts' and you'll get there."  
  
Ron took a pinch of floo powder and threw it into the fireplace, said 'Hogwarts' and disappeared into it.  
  
"You're next Miss Chang."  
  
Cho followed likewise and each of the students after her until it was time for Hermione to come. She took a pinch of floo powder and walked towards the fireplace but she stopped when she got to Harry who was standing next to the fireplace.  
  
Hermione looked at him and smiled. "I'm glad you're safe Harry; see you on the other side."  
  
With that, Hermione gave him a quick hug and threw the floo powder into the fireplace and disappeared just as the others did.  
  
Harry then took a pinch of floo powder and walked over to the fireplace.  
  
"Hogwarts!" Harry yelled and stepped in.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The trip was very much like every other one in the floo network but he eventually reached the correct fireplace and was thrown out onto the ground in Dumbledore's office.  
  
"Welcome back Mr. Potter," said a voice that he recognized as Professor McGonagall's. "We were so worried about you and I'm glad that Professor Snape was able to get all of you out.  
  
Hermione, Ron and Cho were waiting for him at the door and McGonagall gave him a rare smile. "I think your friends are waiting for you, go to them. Madam Pomfrey took Justin Finch-Fletchley and Terry Boot to the Hospital Wing."  
  
Harry got up and followed Hermione, Ron and Cho out of Dumbledore's office just as the adults came in.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Let's go back to the Gryffindor common room, then we can figure out what to do," Hermione said.  
  
"What time is it?" Ron asked. "I'm hungry, let's go eat something."  
  
"I have no idea," Cho replied. "We've been in there for I don't know how long."  
  
"We can safely assume that it's night time since the torches are lit but since you're hungry Ron, let's go to the kitchen to get something to eat," Hermione suggested.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When they got to the portrait leading to the kitchen, Hermione tickled the pear and the portrait swung open allowing them to enter.  
  
The four of them entered the kitchen to find that the house elves were busy preparing food for the next day at breakfast.  
  
Dobby, as expected, came up to Harry and greeted him enthusiastically.  
  
"Harry Potter, sir," Dobby said bowing. "He has come to visit Dobby with his friends, he has. What can I do for Harry Potter?"  
  
"Good to see you too Dobby," Harry said with a smile. "I don't suppose it would be too much trouble to ask you for some food at this hour."  
  
"Of course not Harry Potter sir. Dobby is happy to get food for Harry Potter and his friends," Dobby said as he ran off to grab some tray.  
  
Hermione, Ron, Cho and Harry sat down at a small table off to the side and minutes later, Dobby returned with a large platter of food.  
  
"Here is what was served for dinner today," Dobby announced. "Enjoy yourselves but Dobby is happy to see Harry Potter safe again."  
  
Harry was about to reach for a drumstick when he heard Dobby's statement. "What was that?"  
  
"Dobby is glad to see Harry Potter safe again," Dobby repeated. "Dobby heard that Harry Potter was missing for a day and Dobby was worried that evil wizard got Harry Potter."  
  
Harry smiled at Dobby. "No Dobby, he didn't get me."  
  
"Dobby is glad but now Dobby has to go back to work," Dobby said as he retreated still facing Harry.  
  
"That is one enthusiastic house elf," Cho commented.  
  
"Yes but now Harry we need to talk about what has been going on at school," Hermione interrupted.  
  
"Oh yes," Harry agreed. "You said that you found a large bat and lots of smaller bats coming out of Walter's office?"  
  
"Yes, that's right," said Ron. "Sepet was in there and we thought that he might have been up to something but when we inspected the room, it was a complete mess."  
  
"Was anything taken?" Cho asked.  
  
"Not that we know of, but why would he want to raid his own bodyguard's office?"  
  
"Maybe there was something in there that he wanted to get to Voldemort," Harry suggested.  
  
"But what could he possibly want in there that Walter couldn't have gotten himself?"  
  
"I'm not sure but we should watch Sepet carefully again. I don't think there will be anymore missions anytime soon."  
  
"Don't forget," said Ron. "You have Quidditch against Ravenclaw soon."  
  
Harry turned to face Cho who was looking at him as well. "Looks like we'll be playing against each other Cho."  
  
Cho nodded. "So we will - I want to let you know that no matter what the outcome, I will still be your friend."  
  
"As will I," Harry agreed. "No hard feelings even if you beat me."  
  
Cho smiled. "I don't think that will happen, you're the youngest seeker anyone has seen in a century so I'm sure you won't be easy, besides I doubt that you'd let me win."  
  
Harry blushed. "You're right, I wouldn't."  
  
Hermione, seeing the exchange between the two teenagers, cleared her throat. "Do you mind? We have other matters to worry about."  
  
"Oh, sorry, right, go on Hermione," Cho stuttered.  
  
For the next minute or so, Hermione began to lay down the facts. "We know that Sepet is still a threat to us, Walter has betrayed the Order, Ron's brother Percy is still captured and that Sepet needs to deliver something to You-Know-Who."  
  
"That still doesn't make sense," Harry stated. "Sepet wouldn't go through Walter's office and leave in a hurry? Walter could have easily brought it to You-Know-Who at anytime."  
  
"Maybe there was something that Walter had acquired recently and couldn't bring with him when he betrayed us and so it's up to Sepet to get it," Hermione reasoned. "We just happened to get there when he was trying to get whatever it was."  
  
"Whatever it is, it probably will help You-Know-Who so we need to make sure Sepet doesn't get it but we'll need to search Walter's office first to find out what it is."  
  
"I agree - how about you go around with us on our rounds Harry," suggested Ron. "You can go with Cho then we can cover more ground that way."  
  
"Another thing," Hermione said thoughtfully. "What about that Death Eater with a wand and sword that we fought in Malfoy's mansion?"  
  
"Could it be Draco?"  
  
"No, he was as tall as that other Death Eater with a sword," Hermione reasoned. "Which raises an interesting question, who are they?"  
  
"I couldn't tell" said Harry, "They had their hoods up and when I fired an ice bolt at the one with the sword, he dodged it but Sepet has a shield. The other one must be one of the students or someone else who Sepet has taught how to use a sword."  
  
"Except that it never really worked against elemental magic," Hermione pointed out. "Remember we actually hurt him with our ice bolts that one time?"  
  
"Oh, so that's what you two have been using," Cho said. "You should teach Ron and me how to do that sometime."  
  
"Sure, no problem," Harry said as he continued eating. "But now it looks like our problems have increased. We not only need to keep an eye on Sepet but also everyone else at school."  
  
"Only 6th or 7th year students fit the profile of that other Death Eater but none of them are students in the duelling class."  
  
"You forget, Cho, that our class isn't the only one which means that we will have to observe the older students during Sepet's classes."  
  
"All right, but wouldn't it be easier to just observe Sepet and worry about that other Death Eater later?" Hermione speculated.  
  
"Good idea Hermione, then it wouldn't be so hard because Sepet will just lead us to whoever it is," Harry agreed.  
  
"So it's settled, we keep an eye on Sepet?" said Ron.  
  
"Yes."  
  
For the rest of the evening the four of them sat and talked about various subjects ranging from Quidditch to exploding snap until it was time to go to bed.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A/N: Yay, done! The next chapter will take a little longer because I actually have to think about the subplot for that one. It'll probably be another Quidditch match and a pleasant surprise after all of this morbid treachery. I also may not write all of it since it has a fluff scene and I can't write a fluff scene but thankfully Quis has volunteered to finish it for me. Thanks Quis!  
  
Katy999: Hehe, trying to look for evidence to the contrary hmm? Sorry I had to do that to everyone who liked Walter but he is a Necromancer and they do have dark tendencies.  
  
Phoenix of Light: I love plot twists, don't you? =) There'll be more to come so please keep reading, the story is almost finished. 5 more chapters to go after this and we're done.  
  
Eddie: As I've said before, H/Hr will come later but not in this fanfic. After reading some of Rowling's interviews and reading certain parts of the HP books, I've come to a little theory that Hermione has a crush on Ron but loves Harry, or at least that's how I perceive it and that's how I'm doing the couples.  
  
Smegul: If you want to review, go ahead. If not, that's fine too but it's always good to know what my readers think of the story. You've also been added to the mailing list.  
  
Sabrina: next chapter, hopefully 2-3 days.  
  
Merlins-Apprentice: All right, I'll send you an e-mail when it's updated again. H/Hr will always be my favourite but I can't just ditch the plot in favour of that.  
  
ALPHA WOLFE: Sorry about Walter, I know he was a favourite of a lot of people but plot twists make it interesting no?  
  
hyper-harry-JC: glad you like the story. I tried my best to make it similar to the other four books and it appears that I'm doing a good job so far. 


	34. Chapter 32: Gryffindor and Ravenclaw

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling.  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 32: Gryffindor and Ravenclaw  
  
In a cold, dimly lit dungeon, two figures carrying swords under their robes were dragging the body of Severus Snape out from a cell and bringing him before a figure wearing a long green robe with a deathly white face.  
  
The torches along the walls flickered in the cold and even the flames seemed to draw away in fear from the shadowy figure in the centre, creating a circle of shadows around him as none of the light seemed to reach the place where the green robed figure stood.  
  
"Wake him," commanded Voldemort. "Let's hope that he is of more use than the other two useless idiots who were supposed to guard this place. Unfortunately that clever Headmaster wiped their memories to the point where I can't even undo them."  
  
One of the two Death Eaters drew his wand and pointed at Snape. "Ennervate."  
  
As Snape came to, Voldemort drew his wand in preparation to inflict some dreadful punishment upon the Hogwarts professor lying on the ground before him.  
  
"You disappoint me Severus," Voldemort whispered coldly. "I expected you to be more on your guard, what do you have to say to this?"  
  
Snape attempted to get up but the effects of Dumbledore's spell still lingered and he collapsed to the ground again.  
  
"No answer? Very well then - CRUCIO!!"  
  
Snape screamed in a ghastly tone that echoed throughout the dungeon, spreading fear into even the two death eaters beside Voldemort.  
  
Eventually the pain ceased and Snape breathed heavily onto the cold stone floor, his breath creating icy clouds in front of his face.  
  
"I went, to give them food," Snape explained in between laboured breaths of air. "They grabbed my wand - and used it on me - and the other two."  
  
"I see," Voldemort said slowly, considering the information that Snape had just told him. "So what should we do with you for failing?"  
  
Snape's head shot up suddenly in fear. "My lord, please show mercy and allow me to return to Hogwarts so that I may continue to provide you with useful information."  
  
Voldemort paused but then shook his head. "But Severus, you haven't provided me with a single bit of useful information."  
  
"Vhy don't ve just kill him? He has proven that he is useless, unlike that Necromancer," said the Death Eater to Voldemort's left, drawing his sword in preparation to execute the Hogwarts Professor.  
  
Voldemort lifted a hand and the Death Eater grudgingly sheathed his sword again. "Not just yet, let us see what Severus has to say."  
  
"What of the information that allowed us to capture the entire Phoenix Order?" Snape said in desperation  
  
Voldemort's mouth twisted upward into a slight malicious smile. "Severus, Severus...I can see that you are desperate to retain your life and because of that, I will spare you for now. Return to Hogwarts and continue to provide - 'useful' information for us."  
  
Snape quickly got up and kissed Voldemort's robe before hurrying out of the room before the Dark Lord changed his mind and relieved the Hogwarts Professor of his life.  
  
Once Snape had left, Voldemort turned to the two Death Eaters armed with swords beside him. "Follow him and make sure that he does his duty - you also have your orders."  
  
"Yes my lord," replied both Death Eaters in unison and with a bow, they left the dungeon.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Harry awoke suddenly in bed with his scar burning slightly from having seen Snape tortured again. Although he disliked Snape for the treatment he had received in class, Harry couldn't help but feel sorry for Snape because no one, not even Snape or Malfoy deserved to go through such torture. He of all people would know that for he had gone through it himself.  
  
"Are you ok there Harry?" he heard Ron ask from across the room. "You're holding your scar, did you have another nightmare?"  
  
Looking up, still clutching his scar, he saw that Ron was already awake and that he was changing out of his pyjamas and into his uniform.  
  
"Yeah," Harry told him. "It was of Snape getting tortured but please don't tell Hermione or Cho, I know they'll probably be worried about me if they found out."  
  
Ron nodded slowly. "I'm not so -"  
  
"Please don't," Harry pleaded. "I don't want them to know."  
  
"Oh all right then," Ron said, as he finished buckling his belt around his pants. "We have Quidditch practice later; you'll want to get dressed."  
  
Harry slapped his forehead. This was going to be one long day indeed for the days following their escape from the Malfoy mansion; Harry's attention had been diverted more and more towards his Quidditch game against Ravenclaw. Alicia started to drill the team daily as she wanted to win the Quidditch cup in her last year at Hogwarts just as Oliver Wood had done.  
  
"Why not?" she told the team. "It'd be good to win the cup two years in a row and Gryffindor will be one step closer to winning the house cup."  
  
In terms of classes, ever since Walter had gone over to the enemy, McGonagall put Alastor Moody in charge of the Dark Arts class because Sepet found it too bothersome to have to teach a class in the daytime even though he could stay awake for a continuous 24 hours without problems.  
  
Alastor Moody, like Barty Crouch, was very helpful in that he handled the Defence Class very well and everything he taught was something useful. Harry especially liked it when they got around to the finer points of becoming an Auror since it was something that he might consider doing when he got out of Hogwarts. Hermione was equally excited and she was always complemented by Moody on her knowledge and thoughtful questions in class.  
  
Although the Order had escaped, there was no news that Percy had escaped though McGonagall continually assured the Order that they would not give up on them. Despite such assurances, however, Harry had a horrifying thought that he could be killed but if anyone was worried about Percy, it would be Ron. Ron thought that Percy was a bigheaded brother who thought very highly of himself but in his absence, Ron found it a little depressing that even his brother could be captured and possibly killed.  
  
As for Professor Dumbledore, it was generally assumed that Fudge would never reinstate him as headmaster of Hogwarts so Professor McGonagall continued her role as Headmistress while Dumbledore remained hidden somewhere within the castle but from the Order meetings, it was obvious that her actions were based upon advice from Dumbledore himself.  
  
Still, as a result of his mission and Walter's betrayal, Harry was ever wary of Sepet's actions for if the servant could betray them, why not the master? Yet an interesting side effect was present that Harry had never counted upon and that was the idea that it was always possible for Cho to be harmed and it was here where his feelings for her grew and strengthened his resolve to protect her.  
  
"I'm glad that Dumbledore is back," Ron commented that day at breakfast. "I don't think that any Death Eater will lay another hand on him or cross into Hogwarts again, not even Malfoy's father."  
  
"Ugh," Hermione said disgustedly. "Don't remind us about him.it's bad enough that we have to study for our O.W.L.s this year without having to think about people like Malfoy."  
  
"Come now Hermione," Harry added. "The O.W.L.s aren't for another two months, don't tell me you're studying for them already?"  
  
Cho glared at Harry. "She's right Harry; you should be studying for them now. You may be my friend but that means I care for you and we can't have you failing now can we."  
  
Harry gave her an awkward look since he hadn't expected Cho to side with Hermione. "Does that mean I have to join you two studying for the O.W.L.s?"  
  
Cho and Hermione nodded in unison.  
  
"Yes it does," Hermione said, "and since Cho took them last year as well, she's going to help us study for them. That'll be everyday from now on 9:00 sharp in the library."  
  
"But - ," Ron started to protest but was silenced when Hermione put a finger to his lips.  
  
"I don't want to hear it," she said with a look that indicated that she wasn't going to accept any further argument from either of them. "At any rate, we have potions next and since Snape is gone, I want to get there early so that we can meet the new teacher."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Along the way to the dungeons, the trio ran into Cho in the hallway with another person but when they looked to at him they were surprised to find that she was walking with Viktor Krum.  
  
"Hullo Harry - Hermy-own-ninny - Ron," said Krum. "Funny that ve should run into you three here."  
  
"Where are you off to Harry?" Cho asked.  
  
It took a while for Harry to recover from his state of shock but he eventually responded. "Potions."  
  
"I see, I hear there's a new professor."  
  
"It's Arabella Figg," said Viktor. "I vos just down there dis morning when she came in."  
  
"Is it really?" Hermione asked in disbelief. "I didn't think Dumbledore would be using the Order members to replace the teachers."  
  
"Moody is replacing Walter isn't he?" Harry countered. "I guess Dumbledore would think it reasonable to put any order members as professors since they would know what they were doing, unlike Lockhart."  
  
Hermione gave him a sheepish smile as she didn't forget the fact that he was a fraud but more embarrassing was also the fact that she had a crush on him. "Don't remind me."  
  
"Vell, ve should be going since you need to get to class," Viktor said.  
  
"Bye Harry," Cho called as she started walking backwards to keep up with Krum but then turned around and continued walking down the hall, talking with Krum.  
  
The entire time, Harry regarded Krum with animosity since Krum hadn't taken interest in Cho before, why would he be walking with her now? However his thoughts hadn't seemed to escape Hermione who was studying Harry carefully.  
  
It took the sound of Hermione's voice to draw Harry out of his thoughts but later on, he would be grateful that she did, "Walk ahead of us to class Ron, I'd like to talk with Harry for a moment."  
  
Ron gave her a look of confusion but oddly he didn't object this time and silently obeyed and started walking down the hallway.  
  
Hermione waited until he was out of sight before grabbing Harry by the arm. "Come on, walk with me Harry. I want to talk to you but we can't be late for class either."  
  
"What was that about?" Hermione asked him as they turned the corner. "You seemed to be a little irritated that Cho was walking with Krum, is something wrong?"  
  
Harry shook his head. "Nothing is wrong; it's just that Cho normally doesn't walk with Krum."  
  
Hermione smiled. "You're jealous, how cute. So why don't you ask her out?"  
  
Harry was taken aback by the question. "Before Krum does?"  
  
"Mmm, I don't think Krum is trying to ask her out but just in case he is, you better get to her first," Hermione advised him. "Otherwise you'll end up having someone else take her and you'll be disappointed."  
  
Harry agreed. He knew what that felt like since he tried asking Cho out to the Yule ball last year but Cedric had already gotten to her first. "Except I'm not quite sure that I'd make a good boyfriend."  
  
Hermione shook her head. "I think you'd make a great boyfriend Harry. Take it from a girl; most girls like kind, caring and responsible guys and you have all three characteristics so how can you make a horrible boyfriend? It shows that you can provide security and comfort which I'm pretty sure Cho loves about you."  
  
"But what if things don't work out and I get hurt?"  
  
"There's always that risk but as long as you act like yourself, you can be sure that if things don't work out, it's not your fault and it's not hers either. It just means that you two naturally aren't compatible in the long run."  
  
"Another thing," Hermione continued as they walked down the stairs to the dungeons. "There's no 'I' in relationships. If things don't work out, I'm sure that she'll be hurt just as badly as you will, especially if she puts in a lot of effort into the relationship."  
  
Harry considered it for a moment. "I guess you're right, as usual."  
  
Hermione smiled at him. "Don't be so nervous around her either, it's starting to show and if a girl who has her head buried in books all day long notices it, I'm sure others will too."  
  
"So why are you telling me this?" Harry questioned. Hermione's advice was certainly sudden and it took Harry aback that she would volunteer such advice so freely.  
  
"Because you're my friend," Hermione stated calmly. "I want to see you happy and since it's fairly certain that you like Cho, why not help you two get together?"  
  
Harry nodded slowly, still feeling a little uncertain but eventually his facial expression broke into a wide grin. "Thanks Hermione."  
  
"You're welcome," she said smiling back at him. "Now hurry up and get with her."  
  
"How should I go about it?" Harry asked as they got to the door of their potions classroom.  
  
"I dunno," Hermione replied with a thoughtful look. "Try the astronomy tower, that'll do and since she's not scared of heights like I am, you two could go for a ride on your broom."  
  
"Wow," Harry said in awe. "You always know how to come up with the best ideas Hermione and I'm glad that you're my friend."  
  
"So am I Harry," Hermione said, giving him a quick hug.  
  
"Well, we should go and meet the new professor, right?"  
  
"Right."  
  
With that, Harry opened the door and allowed Hermione to enter the room with him following immediately after.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Potions class went relatively well, Arabella Figg was a lot fairer in dealing points than Snape ever was but that fact alone probably made Harry notice that even Malfoy knew the answers to the questions that were asked in class.  
  
Later that night, on the agenda for Harry was Quidditch practice and it was here that he found time to relax since it was something he truly enjoyed.  
  
Ron was throwing golf balls for Harry so that he could practice catching the snitch because it was far too dark to try live practice. Fred and George were off hitting the bludgers between each other while the chasers were playing a little game of keep away from Alicia.  
  
"Hey, that's not fair!" Alicia cried as Seamus threw the Quaffle to Dean.  
  
"Too bad Alicia," yelled Dean and he quickly threw the Quaffle to Katie Bell, "You wanted Quidditch practice so this is what you're getting."  
  
"They're doing a fair job of keeping the Quaffle away from Alicia," Ron commented as he looked in their direction.  
  
"Yeah..." Harry agreed but when he looked in their direction, he also noticed that a group of people with brooms were heading onto the Quidditch pitch.  
  
"Hey Harry," said Ron, apparently noticing the group of people as well. "Who are those students?"  
  
"Not sure but they're probably Ravenclaws," Harry replied, glancing at the group to see if Cho was there. "I think they want the field."  
  
"Ah I get it," Ron said with a mischievous smile, noticing that Harry was staring at the group. "You're looking for Cho. - Listen, Hermione told me about your conversation with her this morning and I think you should go for it. You have nothing to lose right?"  
  
"Nothing to lose except my friendship with her."  
  
"What do you mean? I think Hermione is right and Cho has some interest in you so you have nothing to lose, I mean you've never cared about your reputation around the school before."  
  
"Is that why she's walking with Krum?" Harry asked, pointing to the male student walking beside Cho.  
  
"No she's - " Ron started to say but as he did a double take, he also noticed that Krum was walking alongside Cho in the group of people with his broom in hand. "She's WHAT?"  
  
The Ravenclaws had mounted their brooms and started to rise into the sky but Cho immediately caught sight of Harry and flew towards him with Krum trailing a little behind.  
  
"How's Quidditch practice Harry?" Cho asked him when she got to him.  
  
"It's going well, I haven't missed a golf ball yet," Harry told her but his attention was more directed toward Krum.  
  
"That's good," Cho said. "Viktor decided to come along to Quidditch practice because he wanted to teach me a few tricks."  
  
Harry smiled at her. "I'm sure it'd be quite a challenge playing against you without resorting to tricks."  
  
Cho's cheeks flushed a tinge of pink. "Thanks Harry."  
  
"Hey Harry," Alicia called as she flew towards him on her broom. "Rodger Davies said that Madam Hooch told him that he could practice on the pitch at 8:00. Its 8:00 but she did tell us that we could have it until 8:30. I think we're done for today though."  
  
"Have enough of keep away eh Alicia?" Katie Bell teased as she came up behind the Gryffindor captain.  
  
"Quiet you, I was only going easy on you," Alicia stammered back in embarrassment.  
  
"I guess it's time for us to go," Ron said with a sigh. "You coming Harry?"  
  
"You're welcome to stay and watch our practice Harry," Cho offered. "I don't think we would mind."  
  
"Wouldn't that ruin any game advantage you'll have on Saturday?"  
  
"I guess but then again, you probably know any tricks that Viktor would teach me."  
  
Harry grinned. "I think you overestimate my knowledge of Quidditch, Cho."  
  
"Oh don't be so modest, just watch us."  
  
"All right," Harry said before telling Ron to go ahead.  
  
Harry then flew to the stands to get a seat where he could watch the Ravenclaw practice for the rest of the evening with thoughts of Hermione's advice going through his head over and over again. He kept evaluating whether or not a relationship with Cho that was more than friendship would be worth it but in the end, he knew that it was and resolved to ask Cho to be his girlfriend on the day of the Quidditch match in the manner that Hermione had suggested.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
On Saturday morning, Harry awoke rather early, not only because he was looking forward to the Quidditch match against Ravenclaw but also because it was the day that he would be asking Cho out. Yesterday Harry hadn't felt nervous at all about asking Cho out but now that it came down to it, he felt extremely anxious for the idea of being rejected was always there.  
  
"Calm down Harry, calm down," he told himself in a whisper as he got out of bed to change. "Take it one step at a time, the Quidditch match comes first."  
  
Once he had finished changing into his robes, he buckled his sword belt under it so that he would be ready if anything happened. After grabbing his wand, he quietly went downstairs to the common room.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Upon arriving in the common room, he was very surprised to find that Hermione was sleeping in the couch with a book spread out across her lap.  
  
Shaking his head, he picked up the book and placed it on the table. Then he gently nudged Hermione so as to wake her.  
  
"Hermione, wake up, its morning already. I'll never understand why you bother to read so late at night, its not going to help your health."  
  
Hermione didn't budge but merely muttered something inaudible. Sighing to himself, Harry drew his wand and pointed at himself to cast the invisibility spell.  
  
Once he was invisible, he gently picked up Hermione and carried her carefully up to the girls' dormitory. He had to struggle to get the door open since his hands were rather full with Hermione but once that was done; he tiptoed into the room, making sure that no one was awake.  
  
He lay Hermione down on her bed and quietly exited back down to the common room.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
In the common room, Harry glanced around to see if there was anything that he could do beside sit around. He could sit in the room until everyone woke up or read Hermione's book. Reading...the thought didn't appeal to him so he decided to take a walk.  
  
There were advantages to being invisible and since there was no cloak to lose this time, he could move around the castle freely.  
  
As he exited the common room and walked downstairs, it gave him ample opportunity to consider how he would ask Cho out. This way he wouldn't be so nervous when it actually came time to ask.  
  
However wandering through the castle with its twists and turns and constantly changing floors eventually led Harry down to the dungeons but he didn't realize it until he heard a voice addressing someone else. In fact, the voice sounded a lot like Sepet.  
  
Putting aside his thoughts, he decided it would be best to investigate since after his encounter with the two cloaked figures in Malfoy's mansion, Harry wondered what Sepet was up to. Added to that was the fact that his most trusted servant had betrayed the Order and thus Sepet himself was under suspicion as well.  
  
It didn't take long for Harry to catch up with Sepet, or rather for Sepet to catch up with him since as he turned the next corner; he stopped dead in his tracks for to his surprise Sepet was coming towards him. Yet what was even more surprising were the two figures that were on either side of him; armed skeletons.  
  
"Now that he's back, he's probably going to be in hiding for a while," Sepet was addressing the skeletons as they walked down the corridor towards Harry. "Since your commander isn't around, you must take care to stay out of sight. Report your status to me whenever possible and remember that our new objective is to locate him and kill him. Our employer will not tolerate failure and neither will I."  
  
As Sepet came closer, Harry flattened himself up against the wall lest they crash into him and discover him there. However Sepet had stopped walking and was sniffing the air.  
  
"Hmmm, a familiar smell... human.," Sepet said to himself. "Each human being has a distinct scent and this one is no exception."  
  
Sepet quickly drew his sword and stood there in guard position. "He must be invisible since there isn't a single room along this corridor for a while. Just because he's invisible doesn't mean that we can pass through him. Form a wall -"  
  
The skeleton on the right of Sepet switched his shield to its right arm and both skeletons stood next to Sepet so that the shields formed a perpendicular barrier to the wall.  
  
"Advance," Sepet ordered and the three of them advanced forward with their weapons ready to cut down anything in their path.  
  
Although there wasn't anywhere to go except back the way he came, Harry didn't want to risk getting lost and missing the Quidditch match since he wasn't completely sure of the route he took down here. The normal entrance to the dungeon level however could only be reached by going through Sepet and Walter's skeletons.  
  
Harry dropped down and laid against the corner where the wall met with the floor so that when the skeletons reached him, their shields would pass over him instead of hit him. He just hoped that they didn't have the sense to use their swords every now and then to slash away at the ground to see if anyone was lying on the floor.  
  
Fortunately for Harry, they didn't and the group passed right over him. As soon as they had done so, Harry quickly got up and ran down the corridor as quietly as possible so that Sepet wouldn't notice that he was no longer there. He also made a note to tell Hermione and Ron about this later for based on what Sepet said, something big was going to happen; it was just a question of when and where.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
By the time he got up to the ground floor, Harry realized that it was already time for breakfast and that the game would be in another few hours so he quickly made his way to the Great Hall where he found Hermione and Ron eating breakfast with the other Gryffindors.  
  
"G'morning Harry," Ron said as Harry sat down on the other side of Hermione.  
  
"Thanks for bringing me up to my room Harry," Hermione whispered to him as he sat down so that Ron couldn't hear her.  
  
"How'd you know it was me?" he whispered back in surprise.  
  
"Only you would care to bring me up to my bed and only you have the invisibility spell to get past everyone else," Hermione explained.  
  
"Heh, your reasoning hasn't diminished one bit even after a night of very little sleep," Harry bantered.  
  
"Shush, eat your breakfast young man," Hermione admonished him. "You'll need your strength for the game if you're planning to win or are you going to let your crush win this time?"  
  
"I may like her but I wouldn't let her win, not in this case anyway," Harry retorted.  
  
"That's good."  
  
"Did I miss something?" Ron asked finally noticing the two friends talking after finishing his breakfast.  
  
Harry and Hermione merely glanced at each other and laughed, replying in unison, "no."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When it came time for the game, Harry and Ron made their way to the lockers to change into their Quidditch robes while Hermione took a seat with Hagrid in the stands.  
  
The day was relatively cloudy but there were still patches of sunlight coming through the clouds. Lee Jordan's voice could be heard before the teams even got onto the field but once the doors opened, both teams walked onto the field amidst cheers from the stands.  
  
"All right, take your places!" Madam Hooch shouted over the deafening crowd. "Mount your brooms!"  
  
Both teams went to their positions on the field and mounted their brooms. Cho was right in front of Harry and he saw that she was smiling brightly at him.  
  
"Good luck Harry, regardless of who wins, I'm sure it'll be a good game," she said.  
  
"Thanks, good luck to you too Cho," Harry replied as they rose into the air.  
  
Seconds later, the Snitch was released and it took a pass in front of each of the seekers before flying away out of sight.  
  
"AND THE QUAFFLE IS RELEASED!" cried Lee Jordan from the commentator's box.  
  
"Let's hope for a short game," Alicia yelled while escorting Katie Bell. "HARRY! GET THAT SNITCH!"  
  
Harry nodded in her direction but he realized that Cho was hovering right in front of him, looking at him to see what he would do.  
  
"Not going to make my job easy are you?" Harry asked her jokingly.  
  
"Nope, that's why I'm here," came an equally playful reply.  
  
A glimmer of gold light appeared on the ground and Harry looked to see if it was the Snitch but at a second glance, it was gone and Harry just attributed it to the sunlight playing tricks on him.  
  
"Looks like this is going to be one long game," commented Lee. "Neither team has scored and neither seeker has caught the Snitch. Alicia has the Quaffle but - ooh, it was stolen away by the other team."  
  
Continuously scanning the field, Harry was distracted every now and then by Cho who was looking for the Snitch as well but neither of them seemed to have located it.  
  
"Say Cho," Harry began nervously.  
  
"Yes Harry?"  
  
"Would you mind meeting me at the Astronomy tower later tonight?"  
  
"How am I supposed to get there without getting caught?"  
  
"Go straight there after your rounds, then you can always make the excuse that you're going back to your tower."  
  
"Ok. but how am I going to get back?"  
  
Harry gave her a mischievous grin. "Leave that to me."  
  
Cho gave him a look of confusion but that gave Harry the chance to look around again. This time he spotted the Snitch following Katie Bell right above her head as she was heading towards the Ravenclaw goals. An idea hit Harry and he dived at the ground in the direction of the Gryffindor goal posts.  
  
Cho, caught by surprise immediately dove after him seeing as he might have found the snitch.  
  
However about midway through the dive, Harry slowed down so that Cho could catch up.  
  
"Hey Harry, stop being nice and get that snitch already!" Ron yelled at him.  
  
Harry looked behind him and grinned at Cho. She looked at him in perplexity but two seconds later, Harry braked abruptly and made an arc into the air so that he could fly in the opposite direction upside down. In the meantime, Cho shot right under his head in the direction he had just been in.  
  
Harry then pursued Katie and had caught up with her right when a bludger passed in front of his face. That slowed him down a little but he didn't take his eyes off the snitch for he was afraid that it wouldn't find it again.  
  
Leaning forward, he accelerated until he got to Katie Bell, closing his hands around the snitch and winning the game for Gryffindor.  
  
"YES! HARRY POTTER DID IT AGAIN! HARRY POTTER HAS THE SNITCH!" Shouted Lee Jordan, causing Professor McGonagall to cover her ears but poor Professor Flitwick who was standing up on his seat hadn't expected such an outcry and fell backwards off the bench into Professor Sprout's lap.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When the teams had descended, Harry found himself being lifted and throw up into the air with a cheer by his team mates.  
  
"Good job Harry!" Fred and George told him once they had put him down.  
  
"You were great Harry!" Hermione said while giving him and Ron a tight hug.  
  
"Thanks Hermione," Harry responded but then he spotted Cho coming towards him, smiling and shaking her head in astonishment.  
  
"That was a good trick you pulled on me Harry," Cho said with a playful smile. "Perhaps I shouldn't have let you watch my practice yesterday."  
  
"Hahaha, I don't think that had any effect on my playing ability as much as your presence did," Harry said.  
  
Cho blushed but then she ran to him and enveloped him in a hug just as Hermione did. "Your flattery won't get you anywhere."  
  
"Will you still meet me at the Astronomy tower tonight?"  
  
Cho gave him a thoughtful look. "I think I know why you want me to go there but ok, I'll go. My duties end at 10:00 so be there around then."  
  
"All right, see you then."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The rest of the day seemed to pass rather slowly for Harry as he waited anxiously for the time to ask Cho out. Hermione told him to study for his O.W.L.s which were coming up next month so that time would pass faster. Seeing as he didn't have anything better to do, he accepted and so he and Hermione were in the library studying. Ron had decided to go play a game of Exploding Snap with his brothers. Yet Harry found himself more and more distracted by what he would say when he actually got Cho up to the Astronomy tower.  
  
"Just take it naturally," Hermione said, noticing his suspenseful facial expression. "Whatever you say, she'll like it."  
  
"Easy for you to say," Harry countered. "You're not the one saying it."  
  
"True but I suppose I may have to at some point and if that time comes, I'll be equally nerve wrecked."  
  
"You say that almost as if your relationship with Ron won't last."  
  
"I don't know," Hermione replied calmly. "There might be something I find that I can't tolerate."  
  
"Like his commentary which makes you want to be sent to an anger management program?"  
  
Hermione burst out laughing, causing Madam Pince to glare at her and she immediately stifled her laugh. "No, no. His commentary is tolerable..but you and I don't know everything about him. There might be personality flaws which I find intolerable or personality flaws in myself that he might not be able to tolerate. People and relationships aren't perfect, Harry, the idea is whether or not you are able to accept the good and bad things about the other person."  
  
Harry nodded slowly and went back to working but what Hermione had just told him was a little unsettling. what if there was something he couldn't tolerate about Cho's personality? This would be something else to consider but based on what Hermione had told him earlier that week, asking Cho out would be worth it no matter what happened.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Later that night after dinner, Harry was watching Ron and Hermione play a game of Wizard's Chess. Ron was winning of course but anything that kept Harry's mind off what he was going to do in a couple hours was welcome. In fact, he even tried a couple games himself but those obviously didn't go too well since he was too distracted to play.  
  
"Why don't you play against me Harry?" Hermione offered. "I don't know enough tricks about this game to give you a thrashing like Ron will but I'm pretty certain that you're tired of losing as am I."  
  
Ron laughed. "Ok, ok, I'll go easier on you two."  
  
"No don't do that," Harry replied. "That'd defeat the purpose of the game.. Besides, I want to be able to rub it in when you lose."  
  
Ron grinned. "Fair enough. Let's see you two play then."  
  
They played until 15 minutes before 10 when Hermione interrupted him, much to his dismay since he was actually winning. "Our shift for rounds is coming up so we need to get ready, common Ron."  
  
"See you later ok Harry?"  
  
"Sure thing."  
  
Hermione and Ron got up to get ready and headed up to their rooms but as Hermione passed Harry to go up, she whispered a quick "good luck" to him.  
  
Once they had gone, Harry exited the common room and started walking towards the Astronomy Tower.  
  
Along the way, he made sure to cast an invisibility spell on himself so that he couldn't be seen around the castle.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When he arrived at the Astronomy Tower, a thought occurred to Harry. he had forgotten his Firebolt so he held out a hand and whipped out his wand.  
  
"ACCIO FIREBOLT!" he said firmly and a few moments later, he found his broom in his hand. He then placed it up against one of the stones and sat on the wall waiting for Cho to arrive.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
It was at least 15-30 minutes before a shadow was seen coming up the staircase to the Astronomy tower. Harry quietly drew his wand, just in case but he realized that he was still invisible so unless it was Moody, no one could see him.  
  
In a few seconds, the shadow revealed itself to be Cho and Harry immediately dispelled his invisibility spell so that she could see him.  
  
Cho let out a gasp when Harry's figure appeared out of thin air. "How did you -?"  
  
"Elemental magic," Harry explained. "But that's not the reason I asked you to come up here."  
  
"What did you have in mind?" Cho asked curiously.  
  
Harry suddenly became self-conscious but he forced himself to say the first things that came to mind. "Well, I figure that this year is almost over..and after all of the things that we've been through, I was wondering what you thought of our friendship."  
  
Cho thought about it for a bit and it was during those moments of silence that Harry suddenly felt discouraged but she spoke eventually and that lifted his spirits a little.  
  
"I think," she began. "That you are a really wonderful person and I think our friendship has been a very good one, you're a good friend Harry and I could never forget all that you've done for everyone."  
  
Harry's cheeks heated up a little. "Thanks Cho.. Say. I was wondering..if you wouldn't mind..."  
  
"Could you repeat yourself Harry? Your voice trailed off."  
  
"I, uh, would you like to go on a broom ride?" Harry asked suddenly, going to grab his broom.  
  
"I'd love to! It'd just be like that one time coming back from that mission with Walter."  
  
So Harry mounted his broom and Cho sat down in front of him. The broom gently rose into the air and Harry slowly accelerated, guiding the broom so that they were flying circles around the castle under the full moon.  
  
"The castle is so pretty no?" Cho commented, seeing the bright torches lighting up the castle grounds.  
  
"It is but..what you said about the mission with Walter." Harry said. "After all the missions that we've been on, I've come to realize that you mean a lot to me and so the reason -"  
  
"Yes Harry," Cho said happily.  
  
"Yes? Yes to what?" Harry said befuddled.  
  
"Your question silly," Cho said with a laugh.  
  
"But I haven't asked a question yet."  
  
"No but I can guess where this is going," Cho replied, looking back to smile at him. "You want me to be your girlfriend and so that's why you asked me to come up to the Astronomy tower, isn't it?"  
  
Harry just gave her a small smile. "Yes it was."  
  
"So yes, I would love to be your girlfriend," Cho said.  
  
This was one of the rare moments in his life that Harry truly felt happy for now he was with the girl of his dreams and the moment was just so..perfect.  
  
For the next two hours, the two students circled the castle on Harry's broom content to be in each other's company.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When it was time to go, Harry flew over to the Ravenclaw tower and allowed Cho to dismount at one of the windows.  
  
"Thank you for such a wonderful evening Harry," said Cho with a smile. "Good night dear."  
  
With that, Cho gave Harry a quick kiss on the cheek and a hug and retreated into the tower.  
  
"Good night," Harry said softly after she had left and he headed back to the Gryffindor tower, content that everything had gone well.  
  
A/N: There were a lot of reviews for me to respond to and since the next chapter will be posted soon, the replies to the reviews are there. Thanks to Quis though for helping me with the H/Cho scene. didn't really know how to pull it off. 


	35. Chapter 33: Trial by Fire

A/N: Well, since the new book is out. I should be reading it but at the same time, this (now an AU fic) needs to be finished. I'll probably write a book 6 fanfic but I'll use Rowling's storyline as the background so ppl don't need to read this. So unless you guys want me to continue writing using this storyline, a book 6, I won't be using this fanfic as background. Probably better cuz then I can start with a different storyline, and since you guys seemed to like Walter, I may use him again. Anyway. the vote it up to you guys.  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 33: Trial by Fire  
  
Now that Quidditch was over, Harry had more opportunities to catch up on other things. First there were the O.W.L.s which was quickly approaching but then he also had other things on his mind such as his encounter with Sepet in the dungeons the day of the Quidditch match and his newfound relationship with Cho. Hermione would push them to study day after day when they weren't doing anything but the two boys would often lead her on a wild goose chase around the castle.  
  
As much as Harry didn't ask Cho in public, somehow the entire school always found a way to get information and so everyone knew about his relationship with Cho by pretty much the next day. A few comments from the Slytherins such as "How did Potter get a girlfriend like her?" were heard but after Hermione slapped Malfoy in front of everyone, those comments died down.  
  
One Tuesday afternoon, after classes, the four students were sitting in the Gryffindor common room, studying for their O.W.L.s when Parvati came downstairs looking a little distressed.  
  
Hermione, noticing this, whispered to them, "Parvati has been acting a little strange lately. I wonder what it is."  
  
"Perhaps she's just troubled over the O.W.L.s like we are," Ron commented as he was reading over his Transfiguration book, looking rather bored.  
  
At this point, Harry decided it was best to tell them about what he had seen on the day of the last Quidditch match and so suggested that they all go take a walk.  
  
"That's probably the best idea anyone's given yet," Ron said, standing up and dropping his book on the table but when he did so, another book, "Quidditch through the Ages," fell out.  
  
Hermione threw Ron a look of annoyance. "I see you've been studying hard."  
  
Ron grinned at her. "You bet, but let's go for that walk."  
  
Hermione rolled her eyes at him and the four of them got up and walked down and out onto the Hogwarts' grounds.  
  
"We'll have to be back by 7 so you two can go on your rounds," Cho told Hermione and Ron.  
  
"We know," Hermione said indignantly.  
  
"Ok." Harry interrupted as soon as they got out of the castle. "Now that's over, the reason why I wanted you three out here is because I wanted to tell you something."  
  
"What would that be?" Cho asked.  
  
"It's something I saw on the day of the Quidditch match," Harry said, as they walked towards Hagrid's hut. "I think it might have something to do with Parvati."  
  
"Did you see Parvati with Sepet?" Ron asked.  
  
"No but I saw Sepet with two of Walter's skeletons walking down in the dungeons. He was giving them orders about staying out of sight because someone is back and I think they're planning on killing whoever it is."  
  
Hermione suddenly stopped dead in her tracks. "How did you avoid getting caught?"  
  
"I used an invisibility spell but Sepet nearly caught me anyway because he can still smell my scent," Harry replied. "Anyway, he's up to something and I think more likely than not, he's going to kill Dumbledore since he's back."  
  
"Mmm, it makes sense," Cho stated. "But how do we kill him?"  
  
"The shield won't work if we surprise him," Hermione pointed out. "So if we surprise him, we can defeat him."  
  
"What about the mortuorum potion? Isn't that made to kill vampires?"  
  
"Yeah but we need someone's blood but a vampire like Sepet probably means that we need a lot of it."  
  
Ron looked a little pale at that thought. "If we did that, we'll be too weak to battle him if it doesn't work."  
  
"No silly," Hermione said sarcastically. "We wouldn't give all our blood in one shot; we'd do it a little at a time, day by day."  
  
"That will take a long time," Cho remarked as she drew her dagger to inspect the blade. "Have you guys sharpened your weapons lately?"  
  
"No, why do you ask?" Harry replied as he drew his sword to inspect the blade.  
  
Cho picked up a rock from the ground and started sharpening her dagger. "I would think the sharper the weapon, the better if we actually fought someone, no?"  
  
"But your weapons are too short and Sepet has a sword," Ron said, glancing worriedly at their knives. "I think you two should stay out of it."  
  
"And let Harry have all the action?" said Cho with a mischievous grin. "I don't think so Weasley."  
  
"I think Ron is just telling you to be careful," Harry said, ending any further argument. "It's agreed that we'll have to fight together so let's meet each night after dinner in Myrtle's Bathroom - we'll make the potion there."  
  
"All right."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
For the next weeks, the four students met each day after dinner in Myrtle's Bathroom, adding a little more blood each day to the potion. Myrtle was delighted to find that Harry was visiting each day but Harry, on the other hand, was a little worried that Cho might take her advances the wrong way.  
  
"This is really starting to get redundant," Ron commented as he cut the palm of his hand with Hermione's dagger and added more of his blood into the cauldron.  
  
"Oh well. it sure beats fighting Sepet," Harry said, following suit as soon as Ron was finished healing himself again.  
  
"HARRY!" they heard Myrtle exclaim from the stall behind them. "It's so nice to see you visiting everyday."  
  
Myrtle glided over to them and hovered above their potion. "This potion looks very painful."  
  
"You have no idea." Ron muttered to himself.  
  
"Why don't you just get some chicken blood or something?"  
  
"Does that work?" asked Ron  
  
Myrtle's eyes shifted quickly in Ron's direction. "Of course it does!"  
  
"No it doesn't," Hermione argued. "We need human blood."  
  
"But why cause yourself unnecessary pain?"  
  
Cho gave her an apologetic look. "Sorry Myrtle, we can't tell you."  
  
Myrtle looked saddened and retreated to her stall again. "That's ok.. I understand. no one trusts Myrtle anymore," she sobbed as she closed the door behind her.  
  
Harry glanced in Myrtle's direction as she went. "Myrtle, we nee -" Harry tried to explain but he was cut off as Myrtle let out a long wail.  
  
Hermione merely shook her head as the sound of Myrtle's cries echoing throughout the bathroom. "I think that'll do it for today - let's go."  
  
The other three nodded and quietly walked out of the bathroom, closing the door behind them.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The next day, while they were waiting for Hagrid to come out of his hut during their Care for Magical Creatures class, the entire Gryffindor class was chatting idly as they sat on the grass in front of Hagrid's hut.  
  
During this time, Harry got a good chance to observe Parvati. He still couldn't get over the idea that she was a vampire walking around in broad daylight but since she was still a newborn vampire, the sunlight probably didn't affect her as much as it would Sepet or any of the older vampires. At the moment, she happened to be chatting with Lavender but in between talking, she kept biting on her hand with her teeth as if she hadn't been fed in years.  
  
"Do you think our potion is affecting Parvati?" Hermione said quietly.  
  
Harry merely shrugged his shoulders in response as Hagrid came out of his hut carrying a very large box.  
  
"Hullo everyone!" he bellowed with a large smile. "How are yeh doing?"  
  
He received nods and some smiles from the Gryffindor students, even a few vocal responses but for the most part, Hagrid didn't seem to care too much since he was more preoccupied with the box he had in his hand.  
  
"I have something special today," Hagrid said, placing the box down on a wooden stump in front of them and fumbling with the lock that was on it. "Not yer normal creature but yeh might encounter it if yeh happen ter come across sum caves."  
  
"What is it?" asked a Gryffindor student. "Is it going to hurt us?"  
  
"No, o' course not," Hagrid insisted. "'Tis only a vampire bat."  
  
At this, Parvati's head shot up quickly, her now blood red eyes widening in a look of genuine surprise.  
  
"How did you manage to catch one Hagrid?" Hermione asked curiously.  
  
"Why t'was feeding on meh chickens," Hagrid explained. "So I laid a trap fer it and managed to catch it. 'Tis asleep now though."  
  
"Are vampire bats found commonly around here?"  
  
"Now that yeh mention it," Hagrid said. "I haven't seen one around here at all, not one of this species anyway."  
  
"I knew it," Harry heard Hermione say to herself. "Harry - I think Sepet is in that box."  
  
Harry nodded. "We need to get our hands on that box before tonight, else he'll wake up."  
  
At that point, Parvati slowly rose from her sitting position and approached the box almost fearfully.  
  
"What are yeh doin'?" Hagrid asked her but he didn't receive a response. "'tis not awake yet an' daylight won't do it any good."  
  
"I just wanted to see it," Parvati replied shakily.  
  
"Yeh get yer chance," Hagrid said. "I've drilled a hole in the top but since yer up here anyway, go ahead an' take a look."  
  
Parvati nodded and bent down over the box so that she could look through the hole at the creature within.  
  
"Can I see too?" Dean asked, getting up as well.  
  
"Once Parvati is done, yeh can. Ok, that'll be enuff," Hagrid told Parvati, "Let the other have a turn."  
  
Parvati stood up again but two seconds later, she snatched the box and took off running in the direction of the castle.  
  
"HEY STOP HER!" Hagrid shouted and he too took off running after her as fast as he could. "SHE CAN'T HAVE THAT!"  
  
Harry jumped up from his sitting position and started running in the same direction. "Hurry up you two, we gotta stop her."  
  
Then Ron and Hermione jumped up and started following, drawing their wands in the process.  
  
After a few moments, Harry saw that he wasn't gaining any ground in following Parvati so he stopped in place and pulled out his wand. Pointing in front of him, he summoned the air guardian.  
  
The air swirled around him and his robe started fluttering in the wind. He saw a small whirlwind appear in front of him slowly forming from the ground until it was about as high as his waist. Then a faint outline formed in the shape of an upper body with arms and a head.  
  
*Your bidding Harry? * he heard the guardian say as soon as it finished taking shape.  
  
"Follow Parvati," he commanded, pointing in the direction that she had gone in. "She's carrying a box. Find out where she's going."  
  
*Yes sir * the guardian acknowledged and it flew off after Parvati at a rapid pace, eventually overtaking Hagrid.  
  
"Harry!" Ron panted when he got to where Harry was standing. "Did you catch her?"  
  
Hermione, being the last to catch up to them, rolled her eyes. "Of course he hasn't. She's not here is she?"  
  
"I sent the air guardian after her. He should be able to catch up to her," Harry explained as they began to walk back towards the castle. "I think that class is over for today so let's go back to the Gryffindor tower. The guardian should come back with some information soon."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
It wasn't until later that afternoon, after classes were finished when the air guardian finally caught up with Harry in the hallway.  
  
*The girl has locked herself in a tower; the box is still with her. * It reported. *she hasn't come out yet.*  
  
"Did she go anywhere before that?" Harry questioned it.  
  
*No but she was going to run into a bathroom before that. *  
  
Hermione perked up at this bit of information. "What stopped her?"  
  
*There was a voice from the box that told her not to go in there. *  
  
Harry stood there in thought. On one hand, their potion worked but on the other, it didn't work on the intended target. This would probably mean that they would have to go to the tower and take the box from her by force, but more than likely, they would be coming face to face with Sepet and only beating him in combat would allow them to kill him.  
  
"Ron, we'll need to get you a sword somehow," Harry finally said, "It's the only way you'll stand a chance in a fight against Sepet."  
  
"But how will we get one?"  
  
"I think Malfoy's sword is still in Walter's office and no one's been in there since he's left the school. You can use it."  
  
"You're not actually thinking of fighting Sepet are you?" Hermione asserted vehemently.  
  
Harry turned back to the air guardian, "Lead us to the tower - sorry Hermione, it's the only way."  
  
The guardian turned around and slowly started hovering ahead of them so that they could follow.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
About 45 minutes later, Harry, Ron and Hermione found themselves climbing up the stairs of what appeared to be the South Tower. The air guardian effortlessly glided above the ground, leading them on but they were starting to get tired.  
  
"I say we get up there, peak through the keyhole to see if she's still there and then we turn back and wait until evening," Ron suggested, plopping down on a stair exhaustedly.  
  
Harry, seeing this, told Hermione to stay with Ron while he continued his way up to see if Parvati was still there.  
  
"But won't you need our help?" Hermione protested. "What if -"  
  
"I have the air guardian with me. Don't worry, I'll come back - just make sure no one comes up," Harry replied with a grin and he continued up by himself, leaving his two friends behind.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
After a few more minutes of climbing, he found himself at a wooden door. Kneeling down, Harry put his ear to the door to see if he could hear anything but after two minutes of hearing nothing, he finally decided to peep through the keyhole.  
  
The tower apparently had a window since he could see a faint light reflecting off the walls. The floor was covered with a thin layer of straw and he saw Parvati sitting up against a wall, facing the door with the box still in her hand.  
  
Harry then stood up again and called the air guardian to him.  
  
*Yes Harry? *  
  
"Stay here and make sure that this door doesn't open," Harry quietly instructed the guardian. "I'm going down again. I'll be back later with some help."  
  
*Yes sir.*  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Later that night, the trio gathered in the Gryffindor common room with Cho to discuss how they were going to get Parvati. The air guardian hadn't come back all day so Harry assumed that Parvati was still in the tower with the box.  
  
"Ok, first we need to steal Malfoy's sword from Walter's office," Hermione was saying. "Ron and Cho can use Harry's invisibility cloak - still have that Ron?"  
  
"Right here," came the reply as Ron held up a piece of cloth that glistened silver in the firelight.  
  
"Hey, watch it Ron," Cho hissed, pushing Ron's hand back down to the floor with her own. "No one needs to see that here."  
  
Harry glanced around quickly to see if anyone had seen but all the students were either too busy playing or had their heads buried in books.  
  
"Back to the plan," Hermione continued. "Harry and I will use invisibility spells and we'll meet outside of Walter's office."  
  
"Agreed."  
  
"Are we ready to do this?" Cho asked everyone.  
  
They all nodded at her and the four of the stood up and briskly walked out of the Gryffindor common room, Ron carrying the invisibility cloak wrapped under his arm.  
  
"Ok, put it on," Hermione told Ron as soon as they were outside the portrait and had turned the corner.  
  
Ron motioned for Cho to stand next to him and he carefully put the cloak around them.  
  
Once they had disappeared from view, Harry and Hermione drew their wands, pointed them at themselves and said the invisibility spell.  
  
Their bodies began to ripple for a brief second before completely disappearing from view.  
  
"How will we be able to follow you?" Harry heard Ron ask.  
  
"Just head down to the dungeons where the Dark Arts classroom is, Walter's office is not much further," Harry replied and he started walking down the spiral staircase leading to the first floor and from there, down into the dungeons.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When Harry arrived at the Dark Arts classroom, he made himself visible again by removing the invisibility spell and a few moments later, the other three students joined him.  
  
"So what now?" Cho asked.  
  
"I guess I'll have to get under that cloak with you," Harry said. "Hermione will know the way, right?"  
  
"Yeah, I think so," he heard her voice say.  
  
Harry ducked under the cloak with Ron and Cho and the three of them with Hermione started walking further down the corridors until they reached another door near the end of the hallway. Sepet's office was also visible at the end but if anything, that was the last place they wanted to be.  
  
"Here, let me take care of the door," said Hermione, drawing her wand from her pocket and pointing it at the door lock. "Alohamora."  
  
The door unlocked itself and they gained access.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Walter's office was neatly arranged as it was before, the potions on the table next to the door all lined up perfectly from the smallest vial to the biggest potion jar. The skulls held newly lit candles and Harry could only assume that either the candles never burnt out or they were replaced by someone daily.  
  
The mirror of Malikith was now on the wall behind Walter's desk but what they were looking for, Malfoy's sword, was nowhere in sight.  
  
"Now where did Walter put it?" Harry said to himself while continuing to look around the room.  
  
Nothing was lying up against the bookcases on the right and Walter's desk only had a nice pile of parchments stacked on the upper left corner.  
  
"Here it is!" Hermione's voice was heard from behind them.  
  
Harry turned around and saw what Hermione was referring to, Malfoy's sword sitting in between the two skull candleholders. Oddly enough, it must have been hidden from view when he entered else he would have spotted it earlier when they came in.  
  
They walked over to it and Ron quickly thrust a hand out from under the cloak to grab it by the sheath. The four students then retreated out of the room, closing the door behind them.  
  
"Ok, now on to the tower," Harry said and he ducked out from under the cloak, leading the way to the tower.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Oddly enough, they encountered no one, not even Mrs. Norris along the way to the tower but when they arrived, Harry found the air guardian standing guard as he had been previously.  
  
*She has not left still, Harry * it said.  
  
Harry nodded and he drew his sword from its sheath. Ron and Cho threw off the invisibility cloak and drew their weapons. Hermione drew her wand first and used the Alohamora spell once again to open the door before drawing her own dagger.  
  
Ron opened the door slowly until they saw a glimpse of Parvati, sleeping soundly against the wall. The moonlight shown through the windows and reflected ample light off of the walls, just enough so that they could see the box in front of her, still unopened from before.  
  
They carefully approached her but as soon as the four of them had entered the room, Parvati's eyes shot open, gleaming red with alarm.  
  
"MASTER!" she screeched in alarm.  
  
The box in front of her rattled as the creature inside struggled to get out. With inhuman strength, Parvati quickly broke the lock to the box and opened it.  
  
Immediately a large bat flew up out of it and started to fly up towards the windows.  
  
"MASTER, DON'T LEAVE ME!" she cried in panic.  
  
The large bat however, had no intention of leaving but it merely snatched a sword that was lying on the windowsill in its claws and swooped down again to where Parvati was.  
  
The four students stood their ground with their weapons in front of them as the giant bat landed.  
  
Before their eyes, the bat began its transformation. Its legs and body began to lengthen and its wings grew in proportion to the body. Soon enough, the bat was taller than Parvati was and it closed its wings around itself as if it were in a cocoon.  
  
The wings started to shrink again, revealing a head covered with short grey hair and two glistening white teeth protruding from its upper lip, coming to rest upon the lower. The creature's eyes were red just like Parvati's, maddened with rage at being discovered. The wings eventually transformed into a large cape fastened by a gold ring, covering the entire body; only a pair of black boots shown from under the cape.  
  
"Th-that's not Sepet," Hermione whispered in realization.  
  
The vampire glanced in Hermione's direction and began to laugh arrogantly. "Very good my dear, you are really quite the observant one."  
  
Its eyes darted to study Ron and Cho before coming to rest upon Harry. Harry stared into its blood red eyes which seemed to spread a feeling of fear throughout his body.  
  
He quickly looked away to avoid its gaze, only to receive another haughty laugh. "So this is the mighty Harry Potter..Lord Voldemort talked of you as if you vere an annoying insect vho put a stop to his plans at every turn. Hovever I think my lord vill be pleased to find that he kan karry out his job now..once I put an end to your miserable life that is."  
  
"Wh-wh-who are you?" Harry finally managed to stammer out.  
  
"Me?" he replied with raised eyebrows. "I am Baron Igor Radu. Your Kount Sepet has been quite an annoying pest in preventing me from feeding upon your kind. But no matter, I did have three very pleasant meals, the first, that girl, being one of the tastier morsels and I have gained myself a servant," he said, motioning with his head towards Parvati next to him.  
  
"So it was you who was biting our students," Cho said accusingly.  
  
"Another observant one. this is very good," Radu said mockingly. "My servant and I shall feast tonight upon you four and you shall join our ranks."  
  
"Over our dead bodies," Ron said in defiance.  
  
This merely led the vampire to laugh. "My good prey. you shall be dead, soon enough.but come, I shall give you a sporting chance."  
  
"Ron - Cho - Hermione, get out of here," Harry finally said, gripping his sword tightly with both hands.  
  
"Are you out of your mind Harry?" Hermione said hotly. "You can't possibly take on two vampires by yourself. You'll die and then -"  
  
"Enough talk, let us fight," the vampire interrupted impatiently. He threw back his cape, revealing a black sword under it.  
  
The vampire slowly closed a gloved hand around its hilt and drew the sword with a menacing smile. The double-edged blade flashed silver as the light from the moon was reflected off of it.  
  
Cho moved to stand with Hermione and drew her wand out as well. "We'll deal with Parvati, you two deal with the vampire."  
  
"Got it," Harry acknowledged and he and Ron charged at the vampire, yelling at the top of their lungs.  
  
"This shall be very entertaining," Radu replied, and to Parvati he gave one simple order, "Kill the girls."  
  
Parvati rolled to the left and charged at Hermione and Cho with her wand drawn.  
  
Hermione and Cho fired a disarming spell at her but Parvati rolled out of the way and returned fire.  
  
Both girls jumped in opposite directions out of the way and Parvati leapt at Cho who thrust out her dagger in defence.  
  
Parvati shoved Cho's hand onto the stone floor, causing her to lose her grip on the dagger.  
  
Cho then used the other hand with her wand to fire a curse at Parvati but that was deflected into the air when Parvati pushed her hand out of the way. She then lowered her head to take a bite at Cho's neck but Hermione used a spell to levitate her dagger and send it flying straight into Parvati's side.  
  
Parvati screamed and rolled off Cho who then grabbed her dagger once again. Cho quickly rolled away from her opponent into a crouching position on the ground.  
  
In the meantime, Harry and Ron were having no luck with the Baron. Ron, having no previous training with a sword was swinging wildly, leaving the Baron to block his blows effortlessly before counter Harry's.  
  
"Attack together," Harry said, as he swung upward towards the Baron's arm.  
  
The Baron brought his sword down to block and thrust forward towards Harry's chest but Harry moved out of the way just in time. Then both boys simultaneously thrust forward with their weapons in the direction of the vampire's chest.  
  
The vampire deflected both swords by pushing Ron's blade into Harry's and then smashing both of them into the wall. Ron lost his grip on his sword at that point and so he was forced to retreat backwards to avoid the next blow coming across his chest.  
  
Harry thought it might be better to just defend himself against the Baron while Ron recovered from his loss and so he began to attack the vampire so that Ron could get away to a safe distance.  
  
Now that one of his opponents was out of action temporarily, the Baron sped up his attack on Harry and started by launching a fury of attacks coming from different directions.  
  
"Ron, your wand," Harry commanded as he deflected a blow off to the right. "Use it!"  
  
At that, Ron drew his wand and fired a leg locking curse at the vampire but the vampire apparently saw it coming and jumped backwards but this was the opportunity that Harry was waiting for since it meant that the Baron would have to lower his guard for a moment to avoid the curse.  
  
Harry sprinted towards the vampire with his sword and with one swift motion, smashed his sword down onto the other's blade. The Baron was put slightly off balance by this as his blade was guided by Harry's into the wall and precipitated the loss of his hold on it. It quietly fell onto the straw covered ground next to Harry's feet. However the vampire was still in midair and so he pushed off the nearby wall with his left leg. This caused him to spin around in the air until he came to another wall which he also rebounded off with his hands; only this time he fell towards the ground and rolled towards Harry, his cape following him in a circular motion from spinning around in the air previously.  
  
This threw Harry off and he felt movement next to his legs. Sensing this, he brought about his sword down near his legs, apparently in time to meet the blade intended to cut his legs out from under him.  
  
At this point, Ron couldn't exactly interfere and so he decided to help his girlfriend and Cho with Parvati by firing some stunning spells at her.  
  
Parvati was already having a hard time dealing with the two girls and so the added opponent, Ron, created more problems for her. Still, she managed to pull out Hermione's dagger from her side and was now charging at Cho with it.  
  
Hermione fired several ice bolts at her as she came but then decided to raise a force field in front of Parvati just before she ran headlong into Cho. Instead Parvati rammed right into the forcefield and was knocked back down. The dagger flew from her grip and landed several feet behind her but Parvati herself remained relatively motionless.  
  
"I think that -"  
  
"HERMIONE LOOK OUT!" Ron shouted as he noticed Harry's battle with the Baron coming over to where Hermione was standing.  
  
Hermione began to turn around at Ron's warning but she found herself knocked to the ground as Harry tumbled backwards onto her.  
  
The vampire then proceeded to kick Harry's sword out of his hand - it slid out of his hand, making a grinding sound as it slid, followed by a clatter as it hit the wall.  
  
Ron and Cho, seeing their helpless comrades, fired off every spell they could in an attempt to get the vampire to back off.  
  
It worked but then Ron found himself tackled to the ground by Parvati and this absorbed Cho's attention as she turned her wand in the direction of the new fight.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When Harry came out of his brief daze after falling on top of Hermione, he found himself staring up at the looming figure of the Baron.  
  
"It looks like I finally get to feed on you," the vampire said in triumph.  
  
Harry looked around at the room, he saw Ron grappling with Parvati and that Cho was trying to help him. Hermione was lying next to him, also looking up at the vampire. When she made a sudden move to raise her wand, Radu quickly kicked it out of her hand as well.  
  
Radu merely shook his head and stared deeply into Hermione's eyes, putting her into a trance has he had seen in the graveyard near Sepet's castle. He reached quickly for his wand inside his pocket but received a sharp kick into the stomach, causing him to double over in pain.  
  
In the background, he could hear the shuffling of straw as the other two wrestled with Parvati as well as something that sounded like a mass of wings flapping through the air.  
  
The moonlight coming from the window was suddenly covered by a mass of bats coming through the window and before he knew it, he saw something drop down from the air, apparently towards him. It was completely black from below as there was a large cape that accompanied it but a brief flash of silver and the sound of a sword being draw from a sheath told him that it was Sepet.  
  
Grabbing Hermione around the waist, he rolled out of the way with her just as the vampire made contact with the Baron's head and landed where they had been previously  
  
The Baron let out a short cry and fell backwards but then quickly flipped around as he was falling so that he could use one hand to stop his fall. He then spun around, arcing out with his sword as well, in an attempt to hit his new target.  
  
Sepet merely leapt backwards to avoid the blow while the Baron got to his feet, shaking his head as he did so.  
  
"So the traitor has finally arrived," he growled quietly to Sepet.  
  
"That's an understatement, traitor," Sepet said with a smirk, jumping off to the side into the wall so that he could push off and attack the Baron from the right.  
  
"You never let me feed on these weaklings," the Baron said, his eyes burning with intense hatred for the vampire before him. "They could be ours and Voldemort vould rule."  
  
"You would merely exterminate them," Sepet retorted. "Then where would we be? Feeding off animals? You disgust me."  
  
"Because of you, I had no choice but to feed off animals!" the Baron shouted as he charged at him.  
  
At this, the three students fighting for control over Cho's dagger in the corner had ceased to fight and turned their heads to look at the battle between the two vampires.  
  
"Master?" Parvati questioned but received no response from the Baron who was starting to lose ground with Sepet.  
  
After a few more minutes of trading weakening rounds with Sepet, the Baron finally gave an order to Parvati, "Retreat - run before he gets you."  
  
"Let me come with you," she insisted and made her way towards him.  
  
"No you fool," said the Baron gruffly but seeing as she wouldn't stop coming, he lashed out one final time at Sepet and then threw his sword at Parvati.  
  
Sepet, seeing this, sprinted in Parvati's direction, putting his own sword in the path of the flying weapon to prevent it from hitting its target. The weapon was then deflected upwards and over Parvati's head at which it then fell, blade first, piercing the stone floor and sticking in place.  
  
Meanwhile, once he saw that Sepet was distracted, the Baron changed back into a bat and flew as fast as he could out of the window.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Harry heard Ron and Cho breathe a sigh of relief that the battle was over and that their opponent had retreated. Sepet sheathed his sword again and grabbed Parvati around the neck.  
  
"You have been one naughty girl," he said harshly. "Your master has abandoned you willingly; however, you are not free yet."  
  
Parvati looked torn between betrayal and abandonment but she stood in place once Sepet released her from his cold hands.  
  
Sepet turned to Harry who was still lying on the ground with his arms around Hermione, "Well done Potter but that's not the last time we'll be seeing him. Come, gather your weapons, I will escort you four to the hospital wing."  
  
"What about Parvati?" Harry asked as he stood up once again and put out a hand to help Hermione up as well.  
  
"I'll keep her with me for now. She looks as if she hasn't been fed a proper meal in a while but I still have a supply of fresh blood in my office," Sepet explained, looking down at the defeated Gryffindor student.  
  
Sepet went over to pull the Baron's sword out of the stone floor with his hand and gave it to Parvati.  
  
"Hold this but don't try anything," Sepet told her, handing her the sword which she took timidly.  
  
Once Harry, Ron, Hermione and Cho retrieved their weapons and put them away, Sepet opened the door to the tower, ushering out the five students into the staircase and closing the door behind him.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
In the staircase, Harry dispelled the air guardian waiting outside and Hermione immediately began to question Sepet.  
  
"How did you find us?" Hermione asked as they began their descent.  
  
"Vampires can sense other vampires as long as they are in human form and are nearby. I came as soon as I sensed his presence. You see, I thought there might have been one of my own helping Voldemort and so that is why I am here."  
  
"So the duelling class is all a charade?"  
  
"No my dear," Sepet replied. "That class will remain since the headmaster feels that it is necessary. The only regret I have is not being able to save her," he said, nodding in the direction of Parvati.  
  
"But there is a way, right?" Harry cut in.  
  
"Of course, only when she drinks the blood of her master will she be free."  
  
"So you were trying to save Alicia and Filch when they were attacked," Hermione said in realization.  
  
"Alas, I did not get to them in time as I did with you but they were less equipped to deal with a sudden vampire attack than you were," Sepet said regretfully.  
  
"But then what about Walter?"  
  
Sepet glanced down at Hermione, "I think that will be enough of your questions Miss Granger."  
  
Hermione looked as if she wanted to press the issue further but when Harry motioned to Parvati, she held her tongue.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Eventually, they arrived at the hospital wing and Madam Pomfrey hurried out of her office to meet them.  
  
"What has happened?" she asked.  
  
"These students have been through a great deal this evening, please see to it that they are taken care of," Sepet replied.  
  
"All right, you five, you know what to do, change out of your uniforms and I will tend to you," said Madam Pomfrey, motioning towards the hospital beds so that they could change.  
  
"Uh, Miss Patil will come with me," Sepet interrupted when he saw that Parvati was also being pushed towards the hospital bed by the nurse. "I have something in my office  
  
"Very well," she huffed. "But if something goes wrong, the headmaster will hear about it!"  
  
Sepet merely bowed in her direction and guided Parvati out of the hospital wing, leaving Madam Pomfrey to tend to Harry and his friends.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A/N: Well, end of chapter 33.. 3 more to go and the end of the story! Thanks for the massive amounts of reviews, it took a lot of time to reply to all of them but here they are.  
  
Merlins-Apprentice: mmmm, not much of a fluff scene last chapter. Sorry if you're disappointed, Fluff scenes aren't my specialty. As for Walter, depending on how you guys vote. I may/may not use him again.  
  
Alpha Wolfe: Sepet evil? Hehehe, I think this chapter gave you the response to that one.  
  
Dragon Phoenix: Plot twists make for a good story but I'm not sure about a big one last chapter. I'll probably continue w/ another story after this but probably after I've read the 5th book. I don't know if its such a good idea to continue this plot because then people would have to read this to get the idea rather than just read book 5. So I'll probably just go off that.  
  
le'Ange de Mort: Walter? This chapter should give answers to that one.  
  
smegol: all right, that would work.  
  
Satoshi: not necessarily but I guess based on book 4, yeah.  
  
Sikokid: This chapter should answer your question is Sepet on Walter's side.  
  
X13: working on detail  
  
Icedrake: I think that's a little irrelevant now.  
  
Eloisamuggle: Hagrid. done. Ginny. hmm. too many characters to keep track of. argh.  
  
harryfanatic: yeah, I think I'll leave the order as it is. nothing else I can do now that book 5 is out.  
  
Blah: yeah, some stuff looks similar but not quite so.  
  
Sunny: I think you have the right mind and this can be a bit of both. H/Cho with underlying H/Hr.  
  
Joe: I'm not J.K. Rowling, that's for sure else I'd be the rich one but I did get several reviews saying that my writing was similar. Thank you very much for your review. Story writing may be profitable but only if I actually develop something and get it published. that takes a lot of effort seeing as I feel like I'm slacking off.  
  
Eddie: ordinary life stuff. hahaha, life is never ordinary for Harry Potter.  
  
Anonyms: I'll probably continue writing a 6th year fic but I'll see what you guys think: should I continue using this plot or since most people will have read book 5, start a new plot off that one? 


	36. Chapter 34: OWLs

Disclaimer: See Chapter 32  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 34: O.W.L.s  
  
As the O.W.L.s drew nearer by the day, the teachers stopped giving them homework, concentrating more on review questions and wand motions in class instead. During this time, the fifth year students were often found in the library or common room with stacks of books piled all around them.  
  
"Your O.W.L.s will be spread along two weeks," Professor McGonagall had told them. "You'll have your theoretical exams in the morning and after lunch; your practical exams will take place. Your Astronomy O.W.L., of course, will be at night."  
  
All of their O.W.L. exams were to be proctored by the Ministry of Magic instead of the professors; probably to ensure that no favouritism would take place.  
  
After they had been nearly killed by the Baron in the tower, Harry spent several days in the library with Ron and Hermione (much to Hermione's surprise), trying to think of better ways to defeat a vampire. Vampires were incredibly quick as Harry had learned in his first duel against Sepet earlier in the year so if he had not been present; it was entirely possible that they would not have made it out of there alive.  
  
Parvati was often seen around the castle looking very unsettled and showing signs of weakness; probably because her master had abandoned her and also because she hadn't had any blood to drink lately.  
  
One evening, about a day before the fifth years would be taking their OWLs, Sepet summoned the trio to his chamber in the dungeons, very much to Hermione's annoyance because she was in the middle of memorizing all of her wand movements for transfiguration.  
  
When they arrived at his office, Sepet was already waiting outside with Parvati.  
  
"Please have a seat, this won't take long," Sepet said, opening the door to his office and ushering the four students in.  
  
They sat down in three of the four chairs that had materialized out of thin air and Sepet, escorting Parvati personally to a seat and pushing her down into an empty chair in front of his desk, then began to walk around while explaining his reason for calling them down.  
  
"No doubt that Miss Granger has already deduced the reason for you coming here," said Sepet, coming around to the other side of his desk and sitting down in a high red velvet chair that he apparently obtained since the last time they were there. "But please do keep your mouth shut Miss Granger. I'll explain everything - I don't need to hear you state the bloody obvious."  
  
Ron began to laugh but stifled it as soon as he caught Hermione glaring at him. Sepet reached into his desk. He produced a small vial with a cork and a pointed needle sticking out of it, almost like a syringe.  
  
"This should help you," said Sepet, handing it to Hermione who took it in her hands and began to examine it. "You just stick it into him and it will get all the blood you need. Mix it with some of hers and have her drink it."  
  
Sepet then motioned for Parvati to come to him. She stood up from her chair, slowly and walked over to stand next to him. He then asked Hermione to stick the needle into Parvati's arm.  
  
"Don't worry my dear," Sepet said comfortingly to Parvati. "You won't feel a thing."  
  
Hermione walked around the desk as well and quickly shoved the needle into Parvati's arm. Moments later, they began to see blood trickle into the vial, filling it up ever so slowly.  
  
"That should be enough," said Sepet and he slowly withdrew the now half filled vial from Parvati's arm. A drop of blood formed around the area where the needle had been and streamed down her arm, falling into Parvati's open hand right below her elbow. She then brought it back to her mouth and with a sipping sound, absorbed it back into her body. The wound itself closed up and no more blood was seen.  
  
Sepet stood then released Parvati from his grasp and gave the vial back to Hermione. "Keep it safe. It should be enough to break the connection between Miss Patil and the baron."  
  
"But how do we find him?" Hermione asked.  
  
"That's simple, Parvati will lead you to him," Sepet replied.  
  
There was a knock at the door and Ron got up to open it but when he got there, the door opened from the other side, nearly flattening him against the wall.  
  
An Asian boy who none of them had seen before entered the room. He looked as if he couldn't be any older than sixteen or seventeen but the way he was dressed indicated that he was connected in some way to someone with a lot of money and more than likely, a lot of influence.  
  
"My apologies for the interruption sir," the newcomer said respectfully to Sepet but upon seeing the four students seated before him, he looked to the Count for instructions.  
  
"Wait a moment please, let me dismiss these students," Sepet interrupted the boy. "That will be all for today you four. Return to your studies please."  
  
The four students proceeded to exit the Count's chamber, looking back in silence, pondering what Sepet could possibly have to do with the newcomer.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
On the first day of the OWLs, a group of six witches and wizards arrived at the castle to administer the exams. The only thing out of place however, was that Percy was accompanying them with Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic.  
  
Professor McGonagall greeted them at the entrance to the Great Hall during breakfast and invited them to have a seat at the Professor's table, which was set to accommodate more guests. Harry noted that she seemed to look at Fudge with a bit of disdain.  
  
The newcomers all headed over to the high table that overlooked the four house tables but to McGonagall's annoyance, Fudge took the seat where Dumbledore would normally have been sitting. McGonagall then had no choice but to give up her seat to Percy who apologized to her before sitting down.  
  
Nevertheless, that wasn't the end of their surprises. Fudge then stood up and pointed his wand at his throat.  
  
"SONORUS!" his voice boomed throughout the Hall, catching the attention of all of the students eating breakfast.  
  
"Good morning to all of you," Fudge's voice carried throughout the Great Hall. "I trust that this year has been very pleasurable for you and for your professors and that your heads are a little fuller than they were before."  
  
"Sir, your speech," Percy whispered to Fudge, handing him a piece of parchment with writing all over it.  
  
"Yes, yes," Fudge snapped at him. "I was getting to it."  
  
Fudge looked up again and began to read from the parchment in his hand. "As you all know, last year, a student here at school, Harry Potter, claimed to have seen You-Know-Who come back from the dead. It is the ministry's official statement that this is a lie."  
  
Several gasps came from around the Hall though the Slytherin table applauded loudly. Harry and Ron began to stand up but Hermione and Ginny shoved them back down in their seats.  
  
"Sit down," Hermione whispered harshly through clenched teeth. "It won't do any us any good if you cause a scene."  
  
Fudge smiled at the Slytherins and motioned for decorum once again before continuing. "We believe that the former headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, has fostered these lies in an attempt to gain more power. I assure you that he is the threat, not You-Know-Who. Anyone who has information on his current whereabouts is therefore encouraged to give us the information. I will personally award a thousand Galleons to anyone who can give us information leading to his capture."  
  
Hermione, who still was gripping both of the boys, tightened her grip on them until they flinched from the pressure.  
  
"Could you loosen your grip Hermione?" Ron told her, looking at her as if she'd gone mad. "We aren't the ones you want to hurt."  
  
Hermione's hold loosened a bit but Harry could tell that she was as tense as everyone else around him.  
  
"He's making Dumbledore out to be the villain and completely ignoring the warnings."  
  
"You probably have also heard of some rumours of the Dark Mark appearing over certain households. We also tell you that this is merely the ministry's attempt to round up the remaining followers of You-Know-Who."  
  
"Never mind that it was us who raided that house and killed all those Death Eaters," Harry muttered to himself.  
  
"Finally, I would like to wish all of you good luck in your studies, especially the Fifth Year students who will be taking their OWLs starting today."  
  
With that, Fudge took his seat again. Professor McGonagall looked very annoyed but Harry could tell that she was trying her best not to throw every curse she knew at Fudge.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
After breakfast finished, the students were dismissed but the Fifth years were told to wait outside while they made changes for their exam.  
  
It was during this time that Harry felt extremely awkward because now he was getting a lot of stares from the other students, many of whom were whispering amongst themselves as well.  
  
"Ignore it," Hermione told him. "They're just trying to make you look bad. We'll just prove that You-Know-Who is back somehow and they'll all be behind you again."  
  
"Uhh Hermione," Ron nudged her. "I think you'll get that chance only if you manage to defeat the Slytherins."  
  
"What?" she asked, giving Ron a look of bafflement but she realized that the Slytherins had surrounded them and were closing on them. Malfoy was among them and he was addressing Harry.  
  
"We know you know where Dumbledore is," Malfoy said. "We'll get that reward once we wring the secret out of you."  
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione looked around to see if any of the Gryffindors were going to support them but it seemed that none of them were making a move.  
  
The trio began to reach into their pockets for their wands but fortunately they were saved the trouble of doing so because the door to the Great Hall had opened and Professor McGonagall stepped out with Professor Flitwick, Professor Vector and Professor Sprout behind her.  
  
"Mr. Malfoy, I'm very disappointed," McGonagall said with harshness. "What are you doing surrounding three Gryffindor students? Fifty points from Slytherin - Now, hurry up and make four lines according to your houses."  
  
The students rushed to follow her instructions and once that was done, they slowly filed into the room, four at a time, each of them handing their wand to one of the teachers. However, Fudge's speech seemed to have some effect on them because even some of the Gryffindors were looking at Harry with suspicion.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Instead of the four house tables, the Great Hall was now filled with desks lined up in neat rows; each one with a quill that no doubt had an anti- cheating charm placed on it. The house banners however were still flying overhead.  
  
Harry took a seat immediately behind Ron while Hermione sat down in a chair to his right.  
  
Once all of the students had taken their seats, Professor McGonagall, with a sweep of her wand, distributed all of the Charms exams to them.  
  
"You have two hours - begin!" she said and flipped the large hourglass that was placed on the teacher's table.  
  
Harry glanced down at the exam paper and picked up the quill on his desk.  
  
Question 1: Give the incantation to make objects fly.  
  
Harry merely smiled because memories of a large club falling on the skull of a troll in the girl's bathroom came to mind.  
  
With that, he began to write his answer..  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
After two hours, they were told to put down their quills and again with a sweep of her wand, McGonagall called all of the exams to her.  
  
"That will be all for now," she announced, "You have two hours before the practical section of your OWL takes place. Report back here at that time."  
  
There was a shuffle of feet and chairs as all of the students got up and began to walk out of the Great Hall, back to their dorms.  
  
"I'm not so sure I got question four right," Hermione was saying to herself on the way out. "What did you guys put down?"  
  
"If you want to know how we did, just ask us, stop beating around the bush," Ron huffed. "We know you got them all right, you always do."  
  
Hermione looked a little hurt but by the time they got back up to the Gryffindor Common room, she had forgotten about it and went back to studying.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When it came time to take the Charms practical exam, all of the Fifth year students started going downstairs and lined up in the four lines again according to their houses, only this time they were given seats to sit in while they waited.  
  
"You will be called in one at a time by one of the ministry officials, follow all of their instructions and good luck," Professor McGonagall told them when they had taken their seats.  
  
With that, McGonagall entered the hall and moments later, the first of the students was called in; a Slytherin.  
  
Each student probably took about thirty minutes before they came out, some of them in tears, others sighing in relief that the exam was over.  
  
Eventually Hermione was called in and Harry glanced at Ron who was sitting to his left.  
  
"It's almost our turn," Ron whispered to him as he glanced at his hands in his lap. "I'm not so sure I'll do well."  
  
"I think we will - think of it as a test on all the things that we've done on our adventures," Harry encouraged him.  
  
Ron looked up thoughtfully and nodded. "Come to think of it, you're right. That first question on the test was basically our encounter with that troll in the girls' bathroom."  
  
Harry grinned. "See?"  
  
"Yeah," Ron agreed, looking a lot more confident now. "I feel a lot better, thanks mate."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Soon, Hermione emerged looking very tense but a lot less worried.  
  
"Harry Potter!" McGonagall called from the entrance.  
  
"Good luck," Harry heard Ron tell him as he got up to enter the Great Hall.  
  
"I'll wait for you when you get out," Hermione told him as he entered. "You'll do well, I know it."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The doors closed behind him and McGonagall stood guard. Looking around, Harry saw that the Great Hall was completely empty except for a table with various objects on it and the ministry wizards who were now seated at the teachers' table.  
  
"Welcome Harry Potter," one of them said as he stood up with a smile. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you."  
  
"Don't worry too much about the exam. Just relax and follow what we tell you do to," the witch to the right told him.  
  
"On the table in front of you, there is a silver plate, please levitate it to us."  
  
Harry drew his wand and pointed it at the plate, "Wingardium Leviosa!"  
  
The plate rose into the air and with a simple wand motion, it flew towards the wizard in the middle and Harry set it down gently in front of him.  
  
"Excellent!" he said delightfully.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
As the days went by, each of the exams followed through similarly as his Charms Exam, Transfiguration, Herbology and even Potions but what surprised Harry the most about his potions exam was the fact that he was a lot calmer about it. Perhaps because he didn't have Snape breathing down his neck and trying to take off house points for every little mistake he made.  
  
Still, the amount of concentration it took to actually take these exams was incredible and Harry found himself exhausted by the time their last OWL, Defence Against the Dark Arts, came around. However if anyone deserved rest once this was over, it was Hermione. She had taken more OWLs than any of them but like him, she was relieved that it was almost over.  
  
"I think we should take a nice long vacation once this is over, don't you?" Ron was suggesting as they stood outside the Great Hall to take their Dark Arts theoretical exam.  
  
"That sounds good about now," Harry agreed. "I didn't think this would ever end."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
As they were ushered into the Great Hall for their last OWL exam by Professor McGonagall, Harry saw that the sixth year prefects and the head boy and girl were standing around the room. He caught a glimpse of Cho who was talking with her counter-part but she threw him a smile when she saw that he was glancing at her.  
  
Professor Flitwick was the one to distribute the exams this time but because of his height, he had to use a spell to flip the hourglass that was sitting on the teacher's table.  
  
A ruffle of exam papers told Harry that it was time to start and so he took the Quill in his hand and glanced over the first few questions.  
  
Question 1: What are Patronus charms used for?  
  
Question 2: When do werewolves become human again?  
  
*This should be fun * Harry thought to himself as he started to write down his answers. He would have to remind himself to thank Professor Lupin later.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When the practical exams were over and the students were dismissed, Cho caught up with them outside the Great Hall.  
  
"How was it?" she asked.  
  
Harry merely grinned. "I loved it."  
  
Ron threw Harry a look of surprise. "And I thought Hermione was the bookworm here."  
  
"Give him some slack Ron," Hermione chided him. "It's his favourite subject."  
  
"I only wish I could be so enthusiastic about the practical exam," Ron said gloomily. "With my skill, I don't think I'll make good marks on this one."  
  
"You survived our adventures so far, it shouldn't be that hard," Hermione said.  
  
Ron gave Hermione an awkward look. "You scare me sometimes."  
  
"Afraid of your girlfriend already Ron?" Harry teased. "You'll need more courage than that if you ever want to get near her and you call yourself a Gryffindor."  
  
Hermione and Cho merely laughed while Ron turned red in embarrassment.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
After a decent lunch and a short nap, Harry, Ron and Hermione headed back to the Great Hall for their Dark Arts practical exam.  
  
The arrangement was the same as always but this time, the 6th year prefects came out to call them in one by one instead of Professor McGonagall.  
  
"Hermione Granger," Cho called from the doorway, once they had all taken a seat outside.  
  
Hermione got up and followed Cho inside along with the other Ravenclaw prefect. Two Slytherin prefects the shut the doors from the inside while the remaining prefects stood guard outside.  
  
Ron pulled out Malfoy's sword from its sheath at his side while they were waiting outside and set it in his lap, shifting it back and forth from one side to the other by the hilt.  
  
"Nervous?" Harry asked, noticing movement from his friend sitting beside him.  
  
"Leaving Hermione in there with two Slytherin prefects, of course I'm nervous," Ron replied with a hint of frustration.  
  
"Cho and another prefect are in there, along with the ministry officials," Harry said trying to put his friend at ease.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
After about thirty minutes, the doors opened and one of the Slytherin prefects walked out with Hermione following closely behind looking rather peeved.  
  
"Your turn Potter," she said disdainfully. "Hurry up else I'll start taking points off."  
  
Harry glanced back at Ron who was starting to stand up but he merely shook his head and his friend slowly sat back down.  
  
For her part, Hermione smiled dully at him and whispered a curt "good luck" to him as he entered.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When he entered the Great Hall, he saw the ministry officials sitting at the high table where they were for his previous exams but this time Fudge and Percy were present as well.  
  
The Slytherin prefects shut the door behind him and Harry's hand instinctively closed around his wand in his robe pocket while his other went to his sword. The first thing he noted though was that the ring he had gotten for Christmas was glowing a lot more brightly than it was before. On the bright side, if his ring was glowing, Hermione's would too and hopefully it wouldn't be too long before she came with help.  
  
"Harry Potter, it's a pleasure to meet you again," said Cornelius Fudge scornfully. "I will be running your exam this time not the officials."  
  
"Sir?" the witch seated to the left of Fudge gave him a quizzical look.  
  
"You heard me, just sit still," Fudge said in frustration.  
  
Fudge turned his attention back to Harry. "Now - defend yourself."  
  
The door near the teacher's high table opened and out stepped two aurors and six dementors. The two Slytherin prefects behind Harry had also drawn their wands and already had them pointed at him.  
  
Moody would have been furious. He had turned his back on two potential opponents and in a few seconds, he would have at least eight more in front of him, assuming that the ministry officials would fight on Fudge's side.  
  
The Great Hall seemed so cold all of a sudden but Harry figured that it was the effects of the dementors in the room. It was possible to defeat both groups - provided that the Slytherins joined in - but since the test was to defend himself, it would be more logical to attack the group in front and worry about the two prefects behind him.  
  
Harry's wand darted up, pointed at the middle of the group in front of him. "EXPECTO PATRONUM!"  
  
A bright silver stag took form and charged towards the dementors who began to make haste to flee from the spell. Four of them did manage to get out of the line of fire but the two in the centre of the line were a little slow and were quickly cut down by Harry's stag.  
  
The two dementors melted into the ground, leaving only their hooded robes behind as evidence that they were previously there. By then, the aurors had their wands raised and both fired different spells at Harry.  
  
Harry cast an air shield in front of him just as the spells reached him and they were absorbed into the shield.  
  
He then returned fire with a disarming spell at the same time both of them fired two different curses at him. One was absorbed into the shield but the other hit Harry well below the shield.  
  
Harry's legs clamped together and he fell to the ground, apparently hit by a leg-locking curse. Still, the Auror who Harry had targeted was likewise hit and his wand flew out of his hand, landing on the floor, spinning as it did, next to Harry.  
  
The Auror merely stared in surprise at Harry, which gave him the opportunity to stun him but his partner was not as slow. Now that Harry was on the ground, he wasn't protected by the shield but he hastily conjured up another one just in time to absorb the next spell that came to him.  
  
Seeing that Harry's attention was completely absorbed by the two aurors, the two Slytherin prefects glanced at each other and grinned.  
  
Wands aside, they charged at Harry while his attention was diverted and the first of the two kicked him hard in the side.  
  
Harry let out of yelp of pain as his body spun around along the ground as the force of the kick sent him off to the side and his wand into the air.  
  
In the meantime, the four remaining dementors had returned by then because with the lack of concentration, the silver stag had vanished. They proceeded to attack the nearest ministry officials.  
  
Taken by complete surprise, four of them were seized by the Dementors who administered the Dementor's kiss to each of them. Moments later, their soulless bodies crumpled to the floor and the Dementors moved on to the remaining two officials. Oddly enough, neither Fudge nor Percy had moved nor were they affected at all by the Dementor's treachery - in fact, they looked rather pleased.  
  
Harry made to get up but his legs were locked together and were pretty much useless but before he could even do that, the two Slytherin prefects pummelled their fists into his back, forcing him back down to the ground.  
  
A hard kick to Harry's neck made him choke on his own saliva and another kick to the stomach area caused him to throw up blood and stomach acid. A hand grabbed him by the hair and slammed his head sideways into the stone floor, all the while; the two were full of glee at seeing their prey at their feet.  
  
Harry groaned in pain and he crawled along the floor towards his wand but he never made it as the two prefects took it upon themselves to ensure that he would be out of action for a while. The pain was excruciating but as long as Harry kept the glowing ring on his hand in sight, he found some comfort in the fact that Hermione would come to his aid.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When Harry came to, he found himself in a chamber, probably well below the dungeons and unheard of. Oddly enough, his captors had left his wand and sword in front of him but there was another object that he hadn't counted on; a stone sarcophagus.  
  
There were no windows and the only light came from the torches placed along the wall and the candles on either side of the sarcophagus. It was a little frustrating to know that Percy had betrayed them all from the beginning. It was he who had alerted the Death Eaters to their presence on their first mission and it was probably Percy who had somehow used Malfoy to kill Karkaroff.  
  
No doors appeared to be present but that usually meant that along the wall somewhere was a secret passage. Only one problem, he had taken quite a beating and could barely move around from the pain. He finally noticed the salty taste of blood in his mouth which had been there for a while. The taste of fresh blood mixed with the dried made him sick and caused him to throw up on the floor next to him.  
  
Grabbing his wand with a free hand, he proceeded to heal himself of his bodily injuries.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
It took him several minutes to finish healing properly but once that was done, he sheathed his sword again and took a better look around the room. He didn't like the feeling the sarcophagus was giving him, the stench of a dead rotting body within was not something he wanted to smell but if his instinct was correct, the Baron would be sleeping within it.  
  
He pointed his wand at the lid and used a levitation charm. A silver streak of light shot forth from his wand and hit the sarcophagus' lid. It began to rise, ever so slowly and move aside as Harry guided it along. He set it gently on the ground and approached the sarcophagus cautiously.  
  
Sure enough, the foul odour of death filled his nostrils as he closed the distance, making Harry crinkle his nose in disgust. Peeking over the top, he saw that there was indeed the dead body of the Baron, lifeless but fully dressed with his arms crossed over his chest.  
  
Harry had no idea what time it was but if his practical exam had taken place in the early afternoon, it would be very close to evening now and the Baron would be waking.  
  
Taking his wand again, he pointed at the lid and began to levitate back into place. It was better that the Baron awoke with his surroundings undisturbed than to find that there was an intruder present. The problem was where to hide himself. The room offered little protection in this aspect but it dawned on him that he would have to be invisible.  
  
He had nearly finished replacing the lid when he heard a tapping from the wall behind him. The tapping grew louder and louder as someone or something was trying to get through. There was only one problem with that because he never finished replacing the lid for a loud screech emitting from the sarcophagus indicated that the Baron was awake.  
  
"Who dares disturb me?!" he hissed from within his place of slumber. Hearing no answer, a powerful fist shattered the sarcophagus lid into several stone pieces and with a swift motion of his hands, the Baron sprung up and stood before Harry, fully awake and with a gleam of bloodlust in his eyes.  
  
"You again..," he said as his eyes settled on Harry. "Back again my prey, are you?"  
  
Harry drew his sword with his free hand and cast a haste spell on himself but he was more surprised to find that the Baron was unarmed.  
  
"Since you made the first move," the Baron said, "The next is mine."  
  
He changed into the large bat and flew up into the air before diving on Harry who sidestepped to the left to avoid it so that instead of hitting Harry, the Baron was surprised to find that his fangs snapped at thin air.  
  
In return, Harry fired ice bolts at point blank range into the Baron's back. The bolts pierced the Baron's back in between his wings until the points exited from his front.  
  
The Baron's eyes filled with rage as he glided away from Harry to relieve himself of the bolts. He first changed back into his normal form and began to pull each of them out one by one. In doing so, he let the blood drip down the front of his outfit, down his legs and onto the floor.  
  
What surprised Harry though was that despite his injuries, the Baron was mostly unaffected. In fact, as soon as the last bolt was removed, the gaping holes closed up rapidly so that, with the exception of the holes in his clothing, there was no indication that he had been hurt.  
  
It was during this time that Harry noticed that the tapping noise earlier had ceased. Instead, a rumbling was heard from behind one of the walls, catching the attention of both combatants.  
  
The wall suddenly exploded and out stepped an Earth Guardian followed closely by Percy, Ron Cho, Parvati and Hermione who was holding a piece of parchment. Each of them had their wands drawn.  
  
"HARRY!" Hermione exclaimed as soon as she set her eyes upon her best friend. "The ring told me you were in trouble and Percy told us that you had been taken away so we used the marauder's map to find you."  
  
"The ring is right Hermione," Percy said with a grin. "He is in trouble and so are you."  
  
"What do you mean?" Hermione asked suddenly confused by Percy's statement.  
  
"He means that he's working for Voldemort!" Harry blurted out, turning to face Percy.  
  
"Listen to Harry," Percy said, "he's caught on faster than you have."  
  
Percy produced a sword from within his robe and used it to cut off the head of the Earth Guardian. Beheaded, the Guardian crumpled into a heap of dirt on the stone floor.  
  
Ron gave his brother a look of shock but that soon turned into a look of fury. "HOW COULD YOU DO THIS!?"  
  
"I'm sorry brother but I always thought that my family did not get the respect it deserved. This is my chance to rectify that."  
  
"By joining HIM!?"  
  
"Exactly Ronald, if you want, you could join us too. It would be very profitable."  
  
In his rage, Ron drew his sword and began to attack the elder Weasley.  
  
"My dear brother, I believe you are throwing a tantrum," Percy said pointedly.  
  
Ron merely responded with several blows but they were easily deflected by Percy.  
  
"I don't have time for this," Percy said in frustration after exchanging a few more blows with Ron. "I have a future to get a hold of. Radu, come, now!"  
  
The Baron changed into his bat form again and flew towards his master before changing back, being sure to knock Ron aside first.  
  
"Finish them please," Percy ordered, throwing him his sword. "Use my brother too; little does he realize that he will betray his friends."  
  
"As you wish master," the Baron said respectfully as he grasped the sword in one of his hands and stood in front of Percy. "Go secure the prize for our lord."  
  
Firing several curses at the five students in the room to get them to disperse, Percy bolted back up the entrance.  
  
"Come on!" Cho shouted to get their attention again, "Let's beat this slimy git and get moving!"  
  
The five students arrayed themselves in a line across from the Baron who was now guarding the only visible exit.  
  
"Ready Ron?" Harry asked his friend standing next to him but received no response.  
  
Glancing to the side, he saw that Ron's face had become a little pale and that he appeared to be suffering from a sudden illness since his breathing was now irregular.  
  
"Are you ok Ron?" Hermione asked, sensing that something was wrong.  
  
"He's just fine my dear," the Baron told them with a sinister cackle. "He's just reconsidering his sides."  
  
Digesting this information, Harry reacted with superhuman speed a split second later, being sure to drag Hermione down to the ground with him just as Ron's sword came about.  
  
"Imperius?" Hermione questioned as they both rolled out of the way to avoid a blow coming towards them.  
  
"Perhaps but Percy didn't use his wand," Harry replied, standing up with his sword ready to block the next attack coming from the side but in doing so, he had knocked Hermione back down to the ground.  
  
Seeing this, Cho quickly fired a stunning spell at Ron but the Baron got in the way and deflected the spell with a sweep of his sword.  
  
"Kill the females, I'll deal with the boy," the Baron told his new underling.  
  
Ron obeyed and began to attack Hermione who was trying to get up but was saved in time by a force field conjured by Harry. The field sizzled with energy was the sword made contact with it and this gave Hermione the chance to stun Ron.  
  
In the meantime, Harry had engaged the Baron again but was trying to keep an eye on his friends as well to make sure they were all right. With the haste spell, Harry was able to easily match the Baron but unlike his previous match, he made sure to use his wand whenever possible so that the Baron would have something else to think about.  
  
He spotted Cho helping Hermione up and Parvati was cowering in a corner, not sure what to do. Next to Hermione and Cho, he saw that Ron was out of action and this was a relief but because he was distracted, the Baron got the perfect opportunity to make his move.  
  
Kicking Harry in one of his shins, the Baron then used his sword to knock Harry's out of his hand before following up with a powerful blow to his jaw with the hilt.  
  
Harry went down quickly and his sword went flying very close to where Cho was with Hermione but his wand also flew out of his hand, landing several feet away. The Baron smiled slightly and was about to thrust the point into Harry's heart when a feminine cry was heard.  
  
The Baron turned to see Cho running towards him brandishing Harry's sword in front of her.  
  
"This should be amusing," the Baron growled. "Come, let's dance."  
  
"CHO! WAIT!" Harry cried as he saw what Cho was trying to do. Trying to make a mad dash towards his wand so that he could help his girlfriend.  
  
At that point, Hermione could only fire ice bolts at the Baron to get him to move out of the way but because of his incredible speed, not a single one hit their target.  
  
To the Baron, Cho was standing still but like a child with a new toy, he merely toyed with his opponent. With a fury of attacks, he used his sword to make multiple cuts up and down Cho's legs. This caused Cho cry out in pain and she limped away slowly so that she could try to get some relief from the torturous assault.  
  
There were no other swords around except for Malfoy's sword but that one was cursed and he had no intention of turning on his friends. He only had his wand and so he had to somehow prevent the Baron from sensing Cho's movements.  
  
Suddenly remembering that not even Sepet knew where he was when invisible, Harry took the initiative to cast an invisibility spell on Cho.  
  
The spell hit Cho in the chest but because she hadn't expected it, she let her guard down for a brief second. Sadly, it only took a second for the Baron to thrust his sword into Cho, piercing her stomach.  
  
Harry's eyes widened in shock at the sight before him; Cho had just been run through.  
  
The Baron grinned triumphantly as he let Cho's body slide off his sword onto the floor. Cho dropped Harry's sword onto the ground and clutched her abdomen, which was now bleeding profusely, not to mention that since her stomach lining had been pierced, stomach acid would also begin to seep out and begin to destroy more of her internal organs.  
  
"HERMIONE! HELP CHO!" Harry yelled but he was relieved to find that his friend was already on her way.  
  
At this point, Harry was worried for his girlfriend but he was also filled with another emotion: a thirst for vengeance.  
  
Summoning his sword to him, Harry cast the same invisibility spell on himself and began to duel with the Baron again.  
  
Because the Baron could only see the Harry's sword and wand in the air, he took haphazard guesses at where his rival could be. This only gave Harry the opportunity to play with the reckless vampire.  
  
First he used his sword to attack the Baron who parried but when he did that, Harry used the ice bolts once again, this time aimed at the Baron's chest.  
  
Ice shards shot forth from Harry's wand, causing him to become visible once again but each of the bolts hit their intended target. As the Baron staggered backwards from the force of the bolts in his chest, Harry swung at the Baron's neck with all his might.  
  
The vampire reacted as expected and brought his sword up to block but because he had let his sword stay in Cho's body for too long, the stomach acid had corroded the blade, thus destroying its ability to block anything for long.  
  
Instead, Harry's blade effectively shattered the Baron's sword but because of the force that he had put in his swing, his sword continued on its way, slicing cleanly into the Baron's neck, decapitating him.  
  
Since it was no longer connected to a body, Radu's head immediately rolled forward onto the floor and cold blood spouted upward like a fountain from the stump, landing on the ground around the body and on Harry's robes as well.  
  
The defeat of the Baron caught Parvati's attention who was now running towards the body of her former master with the vial full of her blood. Opening it when she got to him, she gulped down its contents and bit into the now dying vampire, absorbing what remaining blood was left.  
  
Upon drinking what she needed, she released her hold on the vampire who slowly turned to dust which was blown away by the gust of air coming from the entrance that Hermione had made earlier with her Earth Guardian.  
  
Seeing the Baron defeated, Harry rushed to Hermione's side who was trying her best to heal Cho's injuries.  
  
"I'm sorry Harry," Hermione told him sadly when he reached her side. "Her injuries are too extensive and not even my healing spell will heal her completely."  
  
Harry looked downcast but Cho managed to reach out a hand to him.  
  
"Thank - you - Harry," Cho said, smiling weakly at him. "For bringing me happiness again."  
  
With that, Cho's hand dropped back down to the ice-cold floor and she remained motionless.  
  
Hermione turned her head away from her friend and stared at the stone wall off to the side.  
  
"I'm sorry," was all that she could say softly over and over again as she shed tears for her friend. "I'm so sorry."  
  
Harry stared at Cho's lifeless body for a few moments but in his mind, he felt that Percy should pay for his betrayal as well. Sheathing his sword, and taking his wand in his hand, he stood up and made to leave.  
  
"Stay with her Hermione," Harry instructed the girl kneeling by him, "For me."  
  
Hermione merely nodded her head as Harry began to walk through the hole in the chamber wall.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A/N: One more chapter to go b4 the end! For the sequel, I think I'll do a combination of Rowling's plot and mine. I'll probably add a few more characters, Luna will be one of them cuz she makes an interesting character (her personality will be unchanged from Rowling's Order of the Phoenix). H/Cho will be scrapped of course ^^. For those of you who are thinking about what happens with Percy, next chapter will tell you everything. Special thanks to Quis for beta-reading this chapter for me. 


	37. Chapter 35: For a Better Tomorrow

Disclaimer: See Chapter 32  
  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
  
Chapter 35: For a Better Tomorrow  
  
Leaving Hermione behind with Cho and Parvati, Harry treaded up the path that his friends had made earlier with a singular thought going through his mind: exact revenge on Percy.  
  
Lighting up his wand to illuminate the dark passageway, it suddenly occurred to him that he had no idea where to go. Percy wanted to get his hands on something badly but where and what would it be?  
  
The question of where would be solved easily if he had the Marauder's map and he mentally slapped himself for hastily departing from the chamber without preparing but he could remedy that easily.  
  
He held up his wand in the air and said, "Accio Marauder's map."  
  
Putting his free hand out to wait for the map to come, his mind wandered back to the fight with Radu in the chamber. Was there really any chance that he could have saved Cho? He knew the answer to that one: no. Cho was dead now and there was no bringing her back, not to mention that he could find no comfort in her last words thanking him for bringing her happiness. Hadn't he promised her during the Valentine's dance that he would protect her happiness? Some hero he was. Perhaps it would have been better if he had gotten impaled on that sword instead and in some ways, he supposed he did.  
  
The sound of paper ruffling flying through the air caught his attention and moments later, he felt the roll of rigid paper in his hand.  
  
Putting his wand in his mouth, he unrolled it to find that Hermione had not gotten the chance to dispel its magic and so the entire layout of the castle was visible before his eyes.  
  
A red X with the name Percy Weasley under it was moving around on the floor just above him and there were also several black Xs moving towards the red X with the names of the professors under them. Sepet was in the lead followed closely by what appeared to be Dumbledore.  
  
The floor just above him contained the dungeons but why would Percy be there? Only Snape's classroom, Walter's office and Sepet's chamber were on that level - there was nothing of value on that floor. Unless of course, Percy was trying to get at the Mirror of Malikith.  
  
*Yes, that has to be it * Harry thought to himself. Percy had been babbling on about securing the future and with that mirror in Voldemort's hands, he could predict everything that the Order (or anyone who opposed him for that matter) were going to do. If he hurried, he could catch Percy before the professors arrived.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Looking at the map, Harry briskly walked up the slope that led to the dungeons but as he turned the corner, he noticed that the layout of the castle had changed. Instead of opening into a long hallway as his map indicated a few seconds ago, a solid wall stood in place before him. However there was a steep incline sloping upwards off to his right.  
  
Following this new opening, Harry meandered through a maze of stairs and passageways; he came to a wooden wall with no apparent knobs or handles. Deciding to push against the wall, he discovered that it opened easily and he found himself in Sepet's office.  
  
Stepping into it, he saw that the wooden wall had been the back of the large mirror that was placed on the wall.  
  
Now that he was on the right floor, Harry hastily made to open the door and ran to where Walter's office was.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
As he neared his destination, Harry saw that the door to Walter's office was left wide open. Wand at the ready, he took a few deep breaths to calm his nerves while putting away the map and went in.  
  
Peaking into Walter's office Harry quickly recognized Percy's figure standing in front of the mirror with his wand pointed at it.  
  
"Reducio," Percy said flatly.  
  
A beam shot forth from his wand and struck the mirror in the centre. The mirror began to shrink in size and so Harry decided it was best to enter now before Percy got away.  
  
"Hold it right there Percy," Harry ordered with his wand pointed at Percy.  
  
"Harry Potter," Percy sneered and he whirled around, levelling his wand at him. "You're alive. This IS indeed a surprise."  
  
Harry didn't reply, deciding to let his wand do the talking.  
  
"Expelliarmus!" Harry yelled and a silver bolt of light propelled itself towards Percy.  
  
Percy dodged out of the way and let lose the Cruciatus curse.  
  
Harry cast a shielding charm and the curse was reflected back at Percy who imitated Harry with his own shielding charm.  
  
Glancing back at the mirror behind him, Percy saw that it had now shrunk to the size of a peanut. He grabbed it off the wall and shoved it into his pocket.  
  
"I'd love to stay and play with you but my master calls," said Percy with a sinister grin.  
  
Percy stuck his hand in his other pocket and disappeared in front of an increasingly frustrated Harry just as Dumbledore entered the room with Sepet and Professor McGonagall.  
  
"I think there are three students in a secluded chamber that need help getting out," Dumbledore told McGonagall just as Professor Snape entered the room.  
  
"Severus, come," McGonagall told him.  
  
Snape gave her a look of annoyance but when she ignored it, he followed the Deputy Headmistress out of the office.  
  
"This is indeed very tragic," Dumbledore said, quietly addressing Harry. "I must apologize for not being around much this year. Perhaps if I had offered you some advice or some other form of help, this might have been averted."  
  
Harry merely stared at the now empty wall ahead of him, not wanting to look at Dumbledore.  
  
"I'm afraid that it is my fault Headmaster," Sepet interrupted, hoping to take the blame for himself. "I failed to carry out my duties as agreed upon. I believe I deserve nothing less than death."  
  
"That will not be necessary Vladimir," Dumbledore replied. "You have done quite enough this year and your help as been invaluable."  
  
"But - " Sepet began to protest but was silenced by a wave of Dumbledore's hand.  
  
Harry finally broke his silence, deciding to ask one question that was going on in his mind. "Why?"  
  
"Why?" Dumbledore repeated, raising his spectacles. "Harry, I believe that everything in life has a reason behind it and this case is no exception. Why Percy Weasley misled us and ultimately betrayed us, that is what happens when one puts himself over others. Why Miss Chang had to die? I think the best way to answer that question would be to give you a chance to, not only understand how you have touched others with your bravery and selflessness but to also open your eyes to the hardships and trials ahead. Maybe it will even lead to something better."  
  
Although Dumbledore meant well, Harry had a hard time finding comfort in his words but there were more questions to be answered.  
  
"What of Walter's betrayal?" Harry questioned. "Why did he turn and why did you have to leave us?"  
  
"To the first question, I'm afraid I cannot answer it at the moment but you will get your answer in due time. As for the second question I can only say this. You must know that although we have the Order behind us and perhaps the support of the members of the wizarding community, our enemies are numerous and if certain events did not take place, our position would be weakened. My capture would be one of those."  
  
"I still don't understand sir," Harry replied.  
  
"I had to leave because it would prepare everyone for the possible future where I may not be around to help you," Dumbledore clarified. "In my absence, you have proven yourselves to be worthy over and over again and have helped each other grow stronger. In doing so, should such an event occur where I will not be around anymore, you have ensured that the wizarding world will always have strength to fight against the darkness that threatens it."  
  
"My, old age does begin to catch up on me," Dumbledore said, chuckling as he made his way over to Walter's desk so that he could sit down. "Please have a seat Harry if you have anymore questions."  
  
Sepet moved to stand by the door and Harry sat down in the chair across from Dumbledore.  
  
"That mirror," said Harry. "It showed Hermione and me the future while we were in Professor Sepet's castle. Voldemort will be able to predict everything we do now, is there any way we can defeat him?"  
  
If Harry was expecting Dumbledore to look troubled, he would be sorely disappointed because the headmaster's lips tugged upwards into a smile.  
  
"Life is what you make of it Harry," Dumbledore told him. "Think of it like a game of chess - everyone starts off with the same thing but what you do with your time is up to you. Granted, some things in life are left to chance but as you get older, more and more of your decisions will be decided by experience rather than luck. This is no exception. A mirror may be able to show Voldemort the future but what he decides to do with his time between now and the future he sees is up to him."  
  
At that point, Hermione and a now revived Ron entered the room.  
  
"Miss Granger, Mr. Weasley," Dumbledore greeted them warmly. "Glad to see that you are alive and well. I was just about to leave since I believe that Harry has no more questions for me."  
  
Dumbledore rose from his chair and began to walk towards the door. Hermione and Ron glanced at Harry, both of them worried about their friend.  
  
"Good night Miss Granger - Mr. Potter - Mr. Weasley," Sepet said with a slight bow and with his cape flowing behind him, he followed the Headmaster out of the room.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Harry, are you all right?" Hermione dared to ask when the two adults had left the room.  
  
Harry didn't bother to acknowledge her but merely stared at the wall.  
  
Ron began to move towards Harry but Hermione held him back, shaking her head at him.  
  
"Let me go to him," Hermione whispered to Ron and she slowly approached Harry.  
  
She pulled up the spare chair in the room and turned it so that she could sit in it and face him. "I'm sorry Harry. I did my best but her injuries were too much for my healing spells. I know you wanted to protect Cho but in the end she thought that it was better if you lived."  
  
"What if it is you or Ron next time?" Harry asked with a look of irritation. "What if it is one of you two?"  
  
"Harry, we're your friends and if you think we're going to leave you just because you think that we'll get killed you're an idiot," Ron added harshly.  
  
Hermione cringed at Ron's tone because not only did Harry become visibly angered, he basically resorted to screaming his lungs out at them. "IDIOT!? YOU WEREN'T THERE WHEN CEDRIC DIED! WHO RESCUED GINNY FROM VOLDEMORT!? WHO HAD TO SUFFER THROUGH SLEEPLESS NIGHTS DREAMING OF NOTHING BUT NIGHTMARES!? ME! Don't you DARE call me an idiot Ron - you haven't the slightest idea of what I've been going through for the past four years."  
  
After that outburst, Hermione was saddened by her friend's plight but she did the only thing she thought would help. If words didn't help, perhaps actions would.  
  
Not saying anything to him, Hermione wrapped her arms around him and pulled him towards her in a hug - an action which she hoped would bring him to his senses as well as comfort him.  
  
Ron made to leave but Hermione got his attention, telling him to stay. Grunting to himself, Ron stood where he was and watched his two friends intently.  
  
It was a while before Harry distinctly relaxed and he raised a hand to touch Hermione's arm that was wrapped around the front of his chest.  
  
"Thanks you two," Harry said quietly.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The end of the term feast was a little unnerving for Harry but he was grateful to his friends and even Neville for getting the other students off his back. Too many questions from the other students about Cho were making him angry with them. None of them would ever understand since they weren't there.  
  
Like last year, the hall was decorated in the same manner that it was for Cedric's death but this time it would be in remembrance of Cho Chang.  
  
Dumbledore was sitting in his usual chair for the feast which was a relief so perhaps not all of the news was entirely bad. At least with him in charge, Hogwarts would be a lot safer than it had been over the past few months.  
  
Professor Snape was talking with Professor Sepet - something a little out of the ordinary because Snape didn't take a liking to the vampire - but it was probably more for business rather than out of friendship. Whether or not Snape had friends; that was something Harry wondered about.  
  
The sound of metal on metal was heard from the Teacher's table as McGonagall used a knife to tap on her goblet to get everyone's attention.  
  
Announcing Dumbledore's return to the students, McGonagall resumed her seat and the Headmaster stood up to give his end of the year speech.  
  
"For the fifth year students, I congratulate you on having survived your O.W.L. exams and I would go into more detail why they are necessary but I believe I would be boring you with that. However, there are other matters which I would like to address," Dumbledore said. "The first would be Cho Chang. Like Cedric Diggory last year, she has given her life for what she believed in and I hope that you will not let her sacrifice be in vain. In my absence, I appreciate that you have shown Professor McGonagall the same respect that you have given me and I request that you do the same with your fellow students regardless of what house they are in. The years to come will challenge you with many, many hardships and I have the utmost confidence that you will overcome them. Grow stronger with your studies, grow stronger in your friendships because they will equip you with the tools necessary to fight the battles to come."  
  
The students began to applaud loudly for Dumbledore with the exception of Malfoy. Dumbledore then took his seat and raised his glass at Harry.  
  
Harry followed suit and the two drank from it in mutual understanding.  
  
Collin Creevy was now running around with his camera, snapping pictures of the students.  
  
"How are you feeling Harry?" Ginny asked him seeing that he was not entirely happy.  
  
"I'm feeling a lot better now, thanks Ginny," Harry replied truthfully. As much as Cho was gone now, Hermione and Ron had done their best to cheer him up and he appreciated it a lot. Sirius had also sent him a letter the day before, expressing his condolences.  
  
It was always a relief to see that his friends and remaining family were around to support him but he couldn't quite shake the feeling that Dumbledore was leaving out some of the more obvious things. Percy had escaped meaning that Fudge would still be under his control. Would that mean that the Ministry of Magic could come after everyone here as well? Most likely but should that happen, he hoped that they wouldn't be able to do much.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
On the morning of their departure to King's Cross station, Harry, Hermione, Ron and Ginny were loading their baggage onto their train when a horseless carriage drew up to the station, catching the attention of some of the other students.  
  
Everything about the carriage appeared normal except for the late arrival, very odd indeed but they dismissed it as a student being late. However they were puzzled when the door opened and Professor Sepet stepped out onto the platform dressed in his black hooded cloak.  
  
His head turned from left to right as he scanned the students in front of him, apparently looking for someone and Harry had a pretty good guess that Sepet was looking for him.  
  
"Harry," said Hermione as they were about to board the train. "I think Sepet wants to talk to you."  
  
Harry paused for a moment on the stairs and glanced down at Hermione only to board the train without a word.  
  
Letting out a sigh of frustration, Hermione boarded the train after her friend with Ron and Ginny close behind.  
  
"HARRY!" Hermione called his name, running towards him in the narrow corridor until he whirled about on her and glared.  
  
"What?" Harry hissed through his clenched teeth. "I don't want to talk to Sepet. Now let's go find a compartment."  
  
Hermione shook her head to herself and quietly followed behind him.  
  
"He must still be upset," Harry heard Ron whisper to Hermione. "I think it's a good idea not to talk to him until he calms down."  
  
Ignoring what his friend was saying behind his back, Harry went all the way to the last compartment, thinking that it was empty but when he opened the door, Sepet's hooded figure was already sitting in the seat closest to the window.  
  
"Well Mr. Potter, are you going to keep running or are you going to have a seat?" Sepet asked him.  
  
Harry silently sat down across from Sepet while Ron, Hermione and Ginny filled up the rest of the seat with Hermione sitting next to Harry.  
  
"I'm sorry to hear about your girlfriend but I'm fairly certain you still have unanswered questions. To those questions, I believe I have the answers so if you would like, ask away," said the Count.  
  
Harry merely stared out the window in thought but Hermione began to question Sepet.  
  
"You're not staying for another year, are you?" she asked.  
  
"Unfortunately not," Sepet replied, his hood moving slightly as he shook his head. "I must report back to my superiors and tell them all that I've seen here."  
  
"So much for the Defence Against the Dark Arts position," Hermione muttered to herself, "That's two teachers we've lost this year."  
  
"Not to mention one friend that I'll need to replace somehow," Sepet said, pulling a timepiece out of his pocket and checking it for the time.  
  
The last statement intrigued Harry and so, turning his head so that he was looking straight at the Count, he asked him, "Does that mean you'll go after Walter?"  
  
Although it was too dark to see under his hood, Harry had a feeling that Sepet was genuinely smiling. "If anyone goes after him, it will be me but I have a feeling that I won't need to."  
  
"Why's that?"  
  
"You'll probably figure that out soon enough Mr. Potter," came the evasive reply.  
  
"There's one thing that's missing though," Ron added after remaining silent the entire time. "What about the mirror?"  
  
"What does my traitorous brother need with it?" Ron questioned angrily.  
  
Sepet let out a brief laugh. "I can assure you that mirror is useless to him."  
  
"Why would that be?"  
  
The Count reached into his pocket and pulled out a purple amethyst stone. "This is why."  
  
Hermione was the first to realize what Sepet's actions meant. "That stone powers the mirror and without it, the mirror won't work. Harry and I found that in a stone gargoyle in Sepet's castle and used it to activate the mirror."  
  
"Very good Miss Granger," Sepet stated while leaning over a bit to see what was coming up ahead. "After Walter switched sides, I thought they might come after the mirror and so I took the liberty of removing the stone powering it. That way even if they stole it, it would be useless to them."  
  
"What about Baron Radu? How come you two weren't on the same side?"  
  
Sepet scoffed at the mention of the Baron's name. "We vampires have our own little kingdom that is kept hidden from the eyes of even the wizarding world. Our society has its own hierarchy similar to that of the muggles in the Middle Ages. Naturally the older the vampire is, the higher the rank you are given but that's not important. What is important is that the elders have decided to side against Voldemort."  
  
"What made you decide that?" Harry asked in wonderment. "Wouldn't it be more profitable for you to side with him?"  
  
"That's what some of us believe, those like Baron Radu but what they don't realize is that Voldemort has an intense hatred for those who aren't purebloods," Sepet explained. "This would include centaurs, giants, werewolves, muggles, and to some extent, even vampires. Now, vampires need blood to survive but only the blood of humans has been found to replenish our strength. If Voldemort cleansed the world of muggles, we vampires would be hunted next because we would be forced to feed upon the purebloods to keep our strength. In other words, we would eventually have to fight each other in the end and so, why bother to help him when it would only lead to our extinction?"  
  
"There is one thing that I still don't understand," said Hermione, interrupting the Count. "If you need human blood to survive, how come you haven't attacked a single student at the school?"  
  
The Count laughed to himself. "The answer to that would be a little ingenious concept that Dumbledore came up with. Each time a student was attacked by Radu, his or her blood had to be replaced completely in order to prevent him or her from becoming a vampire. Why let that blood go to waste? Dumbledore had Madam Pomfrey store that blood and it was given to me as payment for my services but unfortunately, that supply didn't last very long and so she had to resort to paying me with her regular stores of medical blood."  
  
"At least we know why Walter was getting that flask from Madam Pomfrey," Harry murmured.  
  
"Well, I believe I will be leaving soon but there is one more thing I would like to do before I leave," Sepet said, reaching into his pocket again.  
  
When he withdrew his hand, Harry saw that there were two envelopes; one with his name on it and the other with Hermione's. He handed them to Harry and Hermione and told them to open it.  
  
Flipping it over, Harry noticed a seal with the letter A on it. "What is this?"  
  
"A friend of mine invited me to a dinner party at his estate over the summer," Sepet explained. "Since I'll be returning to Romania, I hope that you'll take my place. The other invitation would have been for Ruby but again, I won't be going. Go ahead and open them."  
  
Harry gave Sepet a puzzling look. Did the Count actually have feelings for his water guardian? That would really be something interesting indeed but he opened up the envelope and found a piece of parchment folded into thirds. Unfolding it, he read it to himself while the other three students huddled around him to take a look at it.  
  
It read:  
  
To Harry Potter:  
  
Your presence is required at the dinner party held at my estate on July thirty-first in the year one thousand, nine hundred and ninety six at six o'clock in the evening.  
  
Please arrive in your dress robes and preferably with a lady friend. The other invitation is for her.  
  
Your host,  
  
Lord Alton  
  
*Another wizard with a rank of some sort* Harry thought to himself. *Maybe a vampire..Either they all have connections or he's another member of the international ministry.*  
  
Harry's thoughts were interrupted when Sepet stood up and opened the window all the way, letting a pleasant breeze into the compartment.  
  
"The party is supposed to be for purebloods only so don't look so glum Mr. Weasley," Sepet said to Ron, noticing the disappointed look on his face when he had resumed his seat. "Your father should be receiving a group for each person in your family."  
  
"But if the party is for purebloods, why should we go?" Hermione asked with concern. "I don't think we'll be welcome there, especially if the Malfoys are going to be there too."  
  
"I informed him that you two would be attending in my stead," Sepet said, leaning back into his seat as the train passed through a tunnel, darkening the compartment. "He'll make sure that they won't bother you - you have my word on that one."  
  
The four inhabitants of the compartment suddenly heard wings beating the air in front of them as hundreds of bats took flight out the open window and when the train had cleared the tunnel, brining back a stream of sunlight though the glass, nothing but an empty cloak remained in the seat.  
  
"He's gone," Ginny Weasley whispered in awe.  
  
"As you four should be," said a voice from the compartment door followed by two gruff laughs. "Nuisances the lot of you are."  
  
They turned their heads to see Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle looking straight at them. He probably heard everything Sepet had told them moments before and therefore didn't look too thrilled.  
  
"I can't believe that I'll be seeing mudblood and the family of Weasels at the party," Malfoy said disgustedly.  
  
"No one said you had to come Malfoy," Hermione shot back.  
  
"Perhaps not but I think I will," Draco said haughtily. "After all, every pureblood in the wizarding world will be there. That bothersome professor won't be there and so it'll be YOU who will be unwelcome."  
  
Ron made a move against Malfoy but Ginny stopped him. She then strode up to Malfoy and much to the boys' amusement; she slapped him twice, once on each cheek. Ginny wheeled around and sat back down with a satisfied smile on her face while Hermione broke into laughter.  
  
"Just watch it Weasel girl," Malfoy said threateningly. "Your brothers won't always be around to protect you."  
  
Shutting the door behind him, they could hear three pairs of feet pattering away from their compartment, leaving them in peace.  
  
"Don't listen to him Ginny," said Harry reassuringly. "I'm fairly certain that Sepet will take good care of us and even if he doesn't, Dumbledore will see to it."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Up until the train arrived at King's Cross station, the four students discussed everything they had planned for the summer, including what they should do about the dinner party, over a game of exploding snap.  
  
Inwardly, Harry wasn't looking forward to going back to the Dursleys; in fact he dreaded it but perhaps the dinner party would be an excuse to leave and go somewhere else.  
  
As soon as they disembarked, they loaded up their carts and headed over to the portal that would take them back to the muggle world.  
  
"Back to those awful muggles eh Harry?" Ron asked him.  
  
"Yeah," Harry said gloomily. "A month with them will be absolutely horrifying."  
  
"Don't worry Harry," Hermione said cheerfully. "We'll write to you everyday and I'm sure Sirius won't let them do anything horrible too you."  
  
"Ronald! Ginny!" they heard Mrs. Weasley call from the platform.  
  
"I think that's my cue to leave," Ron said, putting out his hand to shake Harry's. "Take care mate."  
  
"You too Ron," Harry replied with a grin as he grasped his friend's hand and shook it. "See you in a month."  
  
Hermione went over and pecked Ron on the cheek. "Bye Ron."  
  
"Bye Hermione," said a blushing Ron as he pushed his cart over to his parents with Ginny following behind.  
  
Once Ron had left them, Harry and Hermione pushed their cart to the portal and returned to the muggle world.  
  
"Your turn Harry," Hermione said once they had cleared the portal and she enveloped him in a tight hug which he returned happily.  
  
She then pulled back slightly and kissed him on the cheek as well. "Don't tell Ron, I'm sure he'll be jealous."  
  
Harry gave her a look of bewilderment but at the same time, his own spirits were lifted and as he looked after his friend who was now returning to her parents, he felt that a month at the Dursleys had just become more bearable.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A/N: The end! I didn't expect to get so many reviews for this fic but I guess that's a pleasant surprise. The responses to all the reviews are in the next page along with the credits but..  
  
First, to all the flamers (2 of them):  
  
Zeus: Thank you very much for your flame. If you hadn't flamed me, I don't think I would have gotten as many reviews as I did. Unlike the second flamer, at least you used proper diction and English grammar.  
  
Chineseboy13: I quote from what you posted on your review: "i don't think i'm going to read any of your story every again. the chapter i have hate and hope that you stop writing these."  
  
First, learn proper diction (and learn how to type). Second, I don't understand what the hell you were trying to tell me, please learn how to speak English (I don't think the smartest person on earth could understand what you were trying to say). Third, you flamed me for the chapter where I killed Cho. Either you really liked the H/Cho or you hated something else, not quite sure with your crappy English so unless you tell me what you disliked in correct English please, I can't fix it (if it is fixable). 


	38. Credits

Credits:  
  
Thanks to everyone that reviewed, here are the responses:  
  
Sunny38: Ron was unconscious in the chapter, stunned by Hermione.  
  
Quis: Thanks for pointing out the error, it's fixed.  
  
Kevin: Sorry you didn't like the elemental magic but I've incorporated the older magic too so Harry won't be switching to the elemental magic entirely.  
  
OriontheHunter & Gaul1: Thanks for the review, hope you'll read the sequel.  
  
Karthik S: That's one very informative review. I'll definitely put more of those characters in (I know Harry would just be fodder for Voldie if he fought him so I didn't have him do that just yet). Harry never gets his revenge so hopefully not too cheap ending. By the time Harry fights Voldie, I'm pretty sure I'll have his abilities increased so that he'll be able to fight him one on one. The other characters you mentioned will take time to make them significant in any way but since you have a point, I'll do it. That means longer chapters but I don't mind ^^.  
  
denelyn_196: You raise some good points but hopefully the last chapter answered your questions. Dumbledore did do something about the traitor (Percy) but you'll have to figure out what it is he did exactly.  
  
Finally, Special Thanks to:  
  
Quis for beta-reading & for checking for other problems.  
  
Juna-Mae for helping out with the beta-reading 


End file.
